The CPI inflation jumped to double digits, 10.10 percent, in January 2012 after an increase of 1.54 percent over the month of December 2011, largely because of spike in the prices of food commodities, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Officials of the PBS admitted that inflation would have been relatively higher still if the impact of monthly fuel price adjustment (FPA) on electricity bills was included in the statistics, which was not possible largely because the government began to charge the FPA much after the new base year (2007-08), for the calculation of CPI was chosen. Now it is not possible for the PBS to include fuel price adjustment charges in the group of commodities used for calculation of the CPI. Thus the FPA impact has not been reflected in the monthly CPI, they added.
Inflation in Pakistan is relatively higher in comparison with other regional countries, conceded the Finance Ministry before the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet and admitted that it would be further fuelled by the latest hike in petroleum and liquefied fuel products prices. PBS Secretary Sohail Ahmed, who released the figures of monthly inflation, said that the impact of petroleum, LPG, and gas prices increase would be reflected in February's CPI.
He said that chicken and other food prices were the major items responsible for the 1.54 percent increase in inflation. The CPI increased by 10.76 percent during July-January 2011-12 over the same period of last year. Analysis of data showed that food and non-alcoholic beverages' inflation soared to 9.30 percent during July-January 2011-12 over the same period of last year while inflation of non-perishable food items was 9.86 percent and of perishable food items 6.19 percent.
The cost of alcoholic beverages and tobacco increased by 6.83 percent in January 2012 over the same month of last year, clothing & footwear by 15.33 percent, housing, water, electricity, gas and fuels by 7.76 percent, furnishing & household equipment maintenance by 20.11 percent, health by 11.01 percent, and transport by 14.84 percent. Communication was the only commodity whose price declined by 0.40 percent. The price of recreation and culture escalated by 5.47 percent during the period under review, education by 10.81 percent, restaurant and hotel by 9.91 percent while price of miscellaneous items surged by 19.42 percent.
The main items which showed increase in prices during January 2012 over December 2011were chicken (24.12percent), eggs (18.26 percent), spices (10.88 percent), onion (4.54 percent), honey (3.43 percent), fish (2.92 percent), gram whole (1.34 percent), and readymade food (1.25 percent).
During the month of January 2012 over January 2011, the trimmed core inflation was observed at 10.4 percent while it was 12.1 percent during January 2011 over January 2010. The core inflation, non-food and non-energy, registered 10.2 percent in the month of January 2012 over 9.8 percent for the same period of last year.
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