Weekly inflation slides down slightly

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation, measured by Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), witnessed a slight decrease of 0.09 percent for combined consumption group during the week ended on December 29, Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday.
The SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group, was recorded at 217.20 points as compared to 217.39 points during the past week, according to PBS data. As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 29.30 percent.
The weekly SPI with base year 2015-16 =100 is covering 17 urban centres and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.
The SPI for the lowest consumption group up to Rs 17,732 witnessed 0.07 percent decrease and went down to 225.44 points from last week’s 225.59 points.
Meanwhile, the SPI for the consumption groups from Rs 17,732-22,888 and Rs 22,889-29,517 declined by 0.12 percent and 0.03 percent respectively whereas it witnessed slight increase of 0.02 percent for consumption group from Rs 29,518-44,175 and declined of 0.12 percent for consumption group above Rs 44,175.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 23 (45.10%) items increased, 07 (13.72%) items decreased and 21 (41.18%) items remained stable.
The items which recorded decrease in their average prices on a week-on-week (wow) basis included , potatoes (8.85%), tomatoes (6.02%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (1.47%), sugar (1.22%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (0.45%),cooking oil 5 litre (0.04%) and electricity for Q1 (2.44%).
The commodities which recorded increase in their average prices included eggs (2.86%), rice basmati broken & wheat flour (2.81%) each, bread (2.76%), firewood (2.49%),LPG (1.61%), energy saver (1.27%) and bananas (1.18%)
On a year-on-year (YoY) basis, the commodities that witnessed a decrease in prices included chillies powdered (34.18%), electricity for q1 (13.96%) and gur (1.38%).
The commodities that witnessed an increase in prices on yoy basis included onions (498.08%), tea packet (65.41%), diesel (65.05%), chicken (64.20%), petrol (52.19%), salt powdered (51.99%), eggs (49.11%), pulse moong (46.94%), bananas (45.06%), pulse gram (44.42%) and mustard oil (41.64%). (APP)