Weekly Inflation Surges Due to Costly Food Prices

The Sensitive Price Index (SPI) for the week ended on March 14, 2024 increased by 1.35 percent mainly due to increase in the prices of tomatoes (21.96percent), bananas (21.76 percent), eggs (7.15 percent), onions (5.57 percent), LPG (4.45 percent), garlic (3.62 percent), mutton (1.74 percent), beef (1.53 percent) and chicken (1.40 percent). The year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 32.89 percent, Gas Charges for Q1 (570 percent), tomatoes (185.68percent), onions (90.27percent), chilies powder (81.74percent), garlic (60.13percent), gents sponge chappal (58.05percent), gents sandal (53.37percent), wheat flour (51.91percent), gur (41.32percent), sugar (37.09percent), salt powder (34.71percent) and energy saver while decrease is observed in the prices of cooking oil 5 litre (21.33percent), vegetable ghee 1 kg (19.12percent), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (17.89percent), mustard oil (15.26percent), bananas (3.94percent), diesel (1.88percent) and cigarettes (0.05percent). During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 18 (35.29 percent) items increased, 10 (19.61 percent) items decreased and 23 (45.10 percent) items remained stable. The SPI for the week under review was recorded at 327.21 points against 322.86 points registered in the previous week, according to the PBS data released on Friday. The SPI for the consumption group up to Rs. 17,732, Rs. 17,732-Rs. 22,888, Rs. 22,889-Rs. 29,517, Rs. 29,518-Rs. 44,175 and above Rs. 44,175 increased by 0.91 percent, 0.86 percent, 1.25 percent, 1.41 percent, and 1.55 percent respectively. The items prices of which increased during the period review include tomatoes (21.96 percent), bananas (21.76 percent), eggs (7.15 percent), onions (5.57 percent), LPG (4.45 percent), garlic (3.62 percent), mutton (1.74 percent), beef with bone (1.53 percent), chicken (1.40 percent), georgette (1.04 percent), shirting (1.01 percent), long cloth 57″ gul ahmed/al karam (0.94 percent), potatoes (0.94 percent), lawn printed gul ahmed/al karam (0.88 percent), mustard oil (0.47 percent), pulse moong (0.32 percent), cooked daal (0.05 percent) and cooked beef (0.05 percent). The items’ prices of which declined during the period under review include cooking oil dalda or other similar brand (sn), 5 litre tin each (1.08 percent), vegetable ghee dalda/habib 2.5 kg tin each (1.07 percent), wheat flour bag 20 kg (0.95 percent), sugar (0.64 percent), gur (0.57 percent), rice basmati broken (0.50 percent), pulse masoor (0.17 percent), pulse mash (0.15 percent), vegetable ghee dalda/habib or other superior quality 1 kg pouch each (0.12 percent) and pulse gram (0.01 percent).