Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation for the week ended on September 29 for the combined income group witnessed nominal increase of 0.03 percent, as compared to the previous week.

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week under review in the above mentioned group was recorded at 218.82 points against 218.75 points registered in the previous week, according to data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday.

As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined group in the week under review also increased by 0.69 percent.

The weekly SPI has been computed with base 2007 2008=100, covering 17 urban centres and 53 essential items for all income groups, it said.

Meanwhile, the SPI for the lowest income group up to Rs 8,000 also increased nominally by 0.07 percent, as it went up from 210.43 points in the previous week to 210.57 points in the week under review, the data revealed.

The SPI for the income groups, as compared to the last week, also increased nominally by 0.06 percent, 0.04 percent, and 0.01 percent respectively.

According to PBS data, during the week under review, average prices of eight items registered decrease, while 12 items increased with the remaining 33 items’ prices unchanged.

The items, which registered decrease in their prices during the week under review included bananas, eggs, onions, tomatoes, mash pulse, moong pulse, garlic and red chilly (powder), it said.

The items which recorded increase in their average prices included chicken (farm), LPG cylinder, gram pulse, gur, vegetable ghee, masoor pulse, wheat flour (bag), wheat, sugar, mustard oil, powdered milk and basmati rice, it added.

The items with no change in their average prices during the week under review included rice (irri-6), bread (plain), beef, milk (fresh), curd, cooking oil, vegetable ghee, patotoes, salt (powdered), tea (packed), cooked beef, cooked daal, tea (prepared), cigarettes, long cloth, shirting, lawn printed, georgette, gents

sandal, gents chappal, ladies sandal, electricity charges, gas charges, kerosene oil, firewood, electric bulb, washing soap, match box, petrol, high speed diesel, telephone local call and bath soap.