Global Rice News

Weekly Inflation Slightly Decreases in Pakistan

In the latest report, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has revealed that the weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), experienced a marginal decrease of 0.06 percent for the combined consumption group during the week ended on November 23. This is a positive development for consumers who have been grappling with rising prices.

According to the PBS data, the SPI for the mentioned group stood at 307.12 points in the reviewed week, down from 309.09 points in the previous week. However, when compared to the corresponding week last year, there has been a significant rise of 41.13 percent in the SPI for the combined consumption group.

It is worth mentioning that the SPI, with the base year 2015-16 = 100, covers 17 urban centers and 51 essential items across all expenditure groups. The data provided is a comprehensive overview of the inflation trends in the country.

Breaking it down further, the SPI for the lowest consumption group, with an income of up to Rs17,732, witnessed a decrease of 0.18 percent, dropping down to 307.81 points from the preceding week’s 308.35 points. Similarly, for consumption groups ranging from Rs17,732-22,888; Rs22,889-29,517; Rs29,518-44,175; and above Rs44,175, the SPI decreased by 0.14 percent, 0.10 percent, 0.08 percent, and 0.02 percent, respectively.

Analyzing the individual items, out of the 51 items considered, prices of 18 items (35.29 percent) increased, prices of 12 items (23.53 percent) decreased, and prices of 21 items (41.18 percent) remained stable during the week. Noteworthy decreases were observed in the average prices of tomatoes (5.78 percent), 2.5-kg vegetable ghee (1.36 percent), 5-liter cooking oil (1.31 percent), bananas (0.91 percent), 1-kg vegetable ghee (0.82 percent), eggs (0.33 percent), sugar (0.20 percent), and tea packets (0.17 percent).

On the other hand, items like garlic (4.61 percent), onion (2.42 percent), chicken (1.81 percent), potatoes (1.69 percent), pulse masoor (1.01 percent), LPG (0.76 percent), firewood (0.59 percent), wheat flour (0.54 percent), matchboxes (0.52 percent), pulse moong (0.52 percent), and plain bread (0.47 percent) witnessed an increase in their average prices on a week-on-week (WoW) basis.

In terms of year-on-year (YoY) comparison, onions (36.18 percent), tomatoes (18.10 percent), mustard oil (4.06 percent), and 1-kg vegetable ghee (2.85 percent) experienced a decrease in prices. On the other hand, items like gas charges for Q1 (1,108.59 percent), cigarettes (94.20 percent), wheat flour (88.18 percent), chili powder (81.74 percent), broken rice basmati (76.57 percent), garlic (71.03 percent), rice irri-6/9 (62.28 percent), gents sponge chappal (58.05 percent), gents sandals (53.37 percent), Lipton tea (53.00 percent), gur (50.80 percent), and potatoes (47.90 percent) recorded an increase in their average prices on a YoY basis.

These fluctuations in prices reflect the dynamic nature of the market and the overall economic conditions. Consumers can make informed decisions based on the provided data to manage their expenses effectively.

To know more about the rice industry and find trusted suppliers and exporters, visit [HAS Rice](https://www.hasrice.com) and [Pakistan Rice](https://www.pakistanrice.com).

Source: [Nation](https://www.nation.com.pk){:target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow”}