The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended on October 18, for the various groups of income ranging between Rs8,000to above Rs.35,000, registered mixed trend as compared to the previous week. SPI for income groups up to 18,000 witnessed slight increase and that of for income groups from 18,001 to above 35,000 witnessed decrease whereas the combined SPI of all groups of income witnessed slight decrease of 0.03 percent, according to provisional figures of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The break up figures show that SPI for the lowest income group up to Rs 8,000, registered slight increase of 0.08 per cent by going up from 181.56 points to 181.70 points during the week under review.
The weekly SPI has been computed with base 2007-2008=100, covering 17 urban centers and 53 essential items for all income groups and combined. However, the SPI for the combined group decreased by 0.03 per cent as it went down from 187.28 points in the previous week to 187.23 points in the week under review.
As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined group in the week under review witnessed increase of 6.03 percent. As compared to the last week, the SPI for the income groups from Rs 8001-12,000 and 12,001-18,000 witnessed increase of 0.04 percent and 0.02 percent while the SPI for income groups from 18001-35,000 and above Rs.35,000 decreased by 0.03 percent, 0.09 percent respectively.
The items which recorded decrease in their average prices during the week under review included bananas, chicken live (farm), red chillies (powder), petrol, moong (pulse), vegetable ghee (tin), cooking oil (tin), gram pulse(washed), onions, mash pulse (washed), LPG(11 kg cylender), sugar and masoor pulse (washed).
The items which registered increase in their prices included tomatoes, diesel, egg hen (farm), potatoes, bread (plain), kerosene, garlic, wheat, energy savor, rice basmati (broken), wheat flour, vegetable ghee (loose), mutton, milk(fresh) and curd. The items with no change in their average prices during the week under review included rice (irri-6), beef, milk (powdered), mustard oil, gur, salt (powdered), tea (packet), cooked beef, cooked dal, tea (prepared), cigarettes, long cloth, shirting, lawn, georgette, sandal (gents), chappal (gents), sandal(ladies), electric charges, gas charges (upto 100m3), firewood, washing soap, match box, telephone local call and bath soap.
An inflationary mixed bag
