ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended February 11, 2021 recorded an increase of 0.81 percent over last week due to rise in prices of food items inducing chicken (5.37 percent), bananas (5 percent), eggs (4.86 percent), sugar (3.74 percent), wheat flour (2.52 percent), cooking oil (1.84 percent), and among non-food items, electricity for Q1 (3.72 percent), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
According to the latest data, the SPI went up from 141.70 points during the week ended February 4, 2021 to 142.85 points during the week under review.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 24 (47.06 percent) items increased, six (11.76 percent) items decreased, and 21 (41.17 percent) items remained constant, said the PBS in weekly SPI data.
The PBS data further stated that the year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 9.17 percent with most of the items increased mainly chilies powder National pack (138.74 percent), eggs (43.19 percent), gents sandal (33.37 percent), chicken (30.41 percent), match box (28.91 percent), gents sponge chappal (25.13 percent), mustard oil (22.39 percent), washing soap (19.70 percent), sugar (16.93 percent), rice irri 6/9 (16.34 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (16.15 percent), shirting (15.38 percent), and cooking oil 5 liter (15.16 percent) while a major decrease was observed in the price of garlic (36.50 percent), onions (30.98 percent), tomatoes (28.90 percent), diesel (8.70 percent), pulse gram (7.26 percent), potatoes (4.17 percent), petrol (3.99 percent), LPG (3.93 percent), moong (0.88 percent), and electricity for Q1 (0.24 percent).
The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,733, from Rs17,733 to Rs22,888, Rs22,889 to Rs29,517 and Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 and above Rs44,175 per month increased by 0.77 percent, 0.94 percent, 0.80 percent, 0.75 percent, and 0.70 percent, respectively.
The commodities, which recorded increase in their average prices include chicken (5.37 percent), bananas (5 percent), eggs (4.86 percent), sugar (3.74 percent), electricity charges for Q1 per unit (3.72 percent), wheat flour bag 20 kg (2.52 percent), cooking oil Dalda or other similar brand 5-litre tin each (1.84 percent), chilies powder National 200gm packet each (1.81 percent), rice irri-6/9 (1.57 percent), Sufi washing soap 250gm cake each (1.50 percent), pulse gram (1.36 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib 2.5kg tin each (1.34 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib or other superior quality 1kg pouch each (1.22 percent), mustard oil (1.15), Georgette (0.91 percent), tea prepared (0.67 percent), rice basmati broken (0.61 percent), cooked daal (0.60 percent), maash (0.60 percent), moong (0.44 percent), masoor (0.24 percent), mutton (0.22 percent), toilet soap (0.08 percent), and powdered milk (0.01 percent).
According to the PBS, decrease was observed in the price of tomatoes (18.63 percent), potatoes (3.77 percent), LPG (2.18), onions (1.65 percent), garlic (0.69 percent), and gur (0.32 percent).
According to the PBS, the commodities which remained stable during the period under review include bread plain, beef with bone, milk fresh, curd, salt powdered (National/Shan), tea Lipton Yellow Label, cooked beef, cigarettes Capstan, long cloth 57" Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, shirting, lawn printed Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, gents sandal Bata pair, gents sponge chappal Bata pair, ladies sandal Bata pair, gas charges, firewood, energy saver, match box, petrol super, hi-speed diesel, and telephone call charges.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021