Weekly inflation decreases 0.78%

The Weekly Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the Combined Group eased by 0.78% WoW during the week ended February 15, 2024, while the SPI increased by 34.25% YoY compared to the corresponding period from last year.

According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) the Combined Index was at 315.18 compared to 317.65 on February 08, 2024, while the index was recorded at 234.77 a year ago, on February 16, 2023.

Out of 51 items, the average price of 22 items increased, 11 items decreased, and 18 items remained stable.

To note, PBS did not release the SPI data last week, while the SPI had fallen by 0.28% WoW the week before.

During the week, a major decrease was observed in the prices of Eggs (28.82%), Chicken (4.23%), Onions (3.48%), LPG (2.85%), and Gur (1.13%).

On the other hand, a major increase was observed in the prices of Bananas (4.64%), Potatoes (2.80%), Match Box (1.31%), Long Cloth (1.29%), and Cooked Daal (0.77%).

The weekly SPI percentage change by income groups showed that SPI decreased across all quantiles ranging between -0.82% and -0.72%.

The Lowest Income Group witnessed a weekly decline of 0.78% while the highest income group recorded a decrease of 0.77%.

On a yearly basis, analysis of SPI change across different income segments showed that SPI increased across all quantiles ranging between 28.68% and 38.54%.

Yearly SPI for the Lowest Income Group increased by 28.68% while the highest income group recorded an increase of 32.08%.

The average price of Sona urea fell to Rs4,513 per 50 kg bag which is 0.50% lower than last week’s price while 54.84% higher when compared to last year.

Meanwhile, the average Cement price was recorded at Rs1,234 per 50 kg bag, which is 2.05% higher than the previous week and 14.27% higher than prices last year.