The Sensitive Price Index (SPI)-based inflation in Pakistan rose by 12.72 percent on a year-on-year basis for the week ending September 19, 2024, as reported by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). This marks the lowest year-on-year increase since October 2021, according to data from Arif Habib Limited (AHL).

The annual rise in inflation was primarily driven by significant price hikes in several key commodities. Gas charges for the first quarter surged by 570 percent, while the prices of onions increased by 74.62 percent. Other notable increases included pulse gram at 57.34 percent, powdered milk at 25.45 percent, beef at 25.31 percent, tomatoes at 17.98 percent, pulse moong at 16.41 percent, cooked daal at 15.65 percent, and salt powder at 15.38 percent.

Conversely, the SPI-based inflation for the week saw a decrease of 0.52 percent compared to the previous week. This decline was attributed to falling prices of diesel, which dropped by 5 percent, onions by 4.45 percent, petrol by 3.88 percent, tomatoes by 1.93 percent, sugar by 0.70 percent, and both potatoes and LPG by 0.57 percent each.

Throughout the week, out of a total of 51 monitored items, the prices of 17 items (33.34 percent) increased, 15 items (29.41 percent) decreased, and 19 items (37.25 percent) remained stable.