Weekly inflation rises over 1.3pc for the third consecutive week

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s weekly inflation rose for the third consecutive week, increasing by 1.3 per cent in the week ending on June 13, driven by higher costs of food and energy, according to a report released Friday by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The uptick underscores ongoing economic challenges for the country, as citizens face mounting expenses amidst persistent inflationary pressures.Last week, the increase was 0.45 per cent, and a week earlier it was 0.11 per cent increase on a week-on-week (WoW) basis.

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), which measures the prices of 51 essential items, increased by 23.03 per cent. The previous week’s year-on-year increase was 21.69 per cent. Notably, in the past two years, the highest SPI reading was recorded at 48.35 per cent in the week ending May 4, 2023.

Of the SPI basket of 51 items, 19 witnessed price increases, eight experienced decreases, and 24 remained stable throughout the week. The report also details the SPI changes across different consumption quintiles, reflecting the varied impact of price changes on income groups. The highest quintile experienced a 1.29 percent WoW increase, while the lowest saw a 1.01 per cent change.

On a yearly basis, the SPI increased across all quantiles ranging between 16.29 and 26.07 per cent. The yearly SPI for the lowest income group increased by 16.29 per cent while the highest income group recorded an increase of 20.75 per cent.