SPI up 0.04pc WoW

ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended March 3, 2022 recorded an increase of 0.04 percent due to increase in the prices of food items including chicken (10.47 percent), bananas (7.06 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (4.08 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5kg (3.69 percent), powdered milk (1.11 percent) and non-food items, LPG (9.45 percent), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 15.23 percent mainly due to increase in tomatoes (241.95 percent), LPG (71.48 percent), garlic (57.88 percent), mustard oil (53.22 percent), cooking oil 5 litre (44.91 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (44 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5kg (43.21 percent), washing soap (36.95 percent), masoor (34.81 percent), petrol (33.42 percent), beef (25.05 percent), and diesel (23.75 percent), while major decrease observed in the prices of chillies powdered (36.30 percent), moong (30.23 percent), eggs (8.70 percent), sugar (8.19 percent), potatoes (7.38 percent), and onions (6.49 percent).

According to the latest data, the SPI went up from 170.47 percent during the week ended February 24, 2022 to 170.53 percent during the week under review.

The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,732 and Rs17,733 to Rs22,888, Rs22,889 to Rs29,517 and Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 increased by 0.12 percent, 0.09 percent, 0.13 percent, and 0.10 percent respectively, and for above Rs44,175 it decreased by 0.03 percent.

During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 19 (37.25 percent) items increased, 13 (25.50 percent) items decreased, and 19 (37.25 percent) items remained stable, said the PBS in the weekly SPI data.

The commodities, which recorded increase in their average prices included chicken (10.47 percent), LPG (9.45 percent), bananas (7.06 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib or other superior quality 1kg pouch each (4.08 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib 2.5kg tin each (3.69 percent), mustard oil (2.98 percent), cooking oil Daldaor other similar brand (sn), 5 litre tin each (2.19 percent), powdered milk Nido (1.11 percent), Georgette (1.06 percent), tea Lipton Yellow Label (0.69 percent), long cloth 57” Gul Ahmed/Al Karam(0.68 percent), Sufi washing soap (0.60 percent), milk fresh (0.34 percent), mutton (0.32 percent), curd (0.20 percent), beef with bone (0.14 percent), pulse gram (0.07 percent), tea prepared (0.06 percent), and cooked daal (0.03 percent).

The commodities, which recorded decrease in their prices during the period under review include tomatoes (27.06 percent), eggs (7.18 percent), hi-speed diesel (6.43 percent), petrol super (6.23 percent), garlic (3.27 percent), moong (0.96 percent), masoor (0.69 percent), onions (0.40 percent), wheat flour bag 20kg (0.35 percent), sugar (0.27 percent), potatoes (0.20 percent), maash (0.16 percent), and gur (0.10 percent).

The commodities whose prices remained unchanged during the period included rice basmati broken, rice irri-6/9 (Sindh/Punjab), bread plain, salt powdered, chilies, powder, cooked beef, cigarettes Capstan, shirting, lawn printed Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, gents sandal Bata pair, gents sponge chappal Bata pair, ladies sandal Bata pair, electricity charges, gas charges, firewood whole, energy saver, match box, telephone call charges, and toilet soap.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022