SPI up 8.52 percent on year-on-year

The weekly Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ending on March 1--SPI on Year-on-Year (YoY)--has gone up by 8.52 percent as compared to the corresponding week of last year, but it has decreased against 9.14 percent increase posted last week. After a long time, all income groups experienced a single-digit increase, indicating some stability in prices.
The income group up to Rs 3000 shows 9.84 percent increase YoY; Rs 3000-Rs 5000 9.38 percent; Rs 5000-Rs 12000 9.32 percent; and the group above Rs 12000 shows 7.73 percent increase. The Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS) bulletin, based on 53 essential daily-use items from 17 urban centres, showed that 14 items showed increase in prices, 12 posted decrease, while 27 items remained unchanged during the week.
Among those registering increase were tomatoes, eggs, rice (basmati broken and Irri-6), firewood, mash pulse all of concern to the poor segment of society. Similarly, some of the daily-use items showing decrease during the week were onions, potatoes, garlic, gur, sugar, masoor, gram, moong, and LPG. But all the items were costlier YoY, except for tomatoes and sugar.
Out of 53 items, 43 were costlier on YoY with 29 by double-digit. The significant items consumed by the lower income groups, which were dearer on YoY basis were: onions 141 percent; rice basmati broken 24 percent; rice Irri-6 17 percent; salt 19 percent; garlic 15 percent; vegetable ghee 22 percent; gram pulse 46 percent; moong 21 percent; mash 38 percent; gur 6 percent; milk 13 percent; curd 11 percent; tea 13 percent; match box 23 percent; firewood 13 percent; kerosene 7 percent and gas by 10 percent.
However, a few items like tomatoes by 67 percent, potatoes by 26 percent, and sugar 13 percent have shown considerable decline in their prices over the corresponding week of last year.
The items of importance having substantial difference in their minimum and maximum prices from different cities are: onions (Rs 16 - 40 per kg), potatoes (Rs 8 - 20 per kg), wheat (Rs 11 - 15 per kg), masoor (Rs 36 - 56 per kg), moong (Rs 50 - 65 per kg), mash (Rs 60 - 84 per kg), gram (Rs 40 - 52 per kg), rice basmati (Rs 20 - 32 per kg), rice irri-6 (Rs 15 - 24 per kg), sugar (Rs 29 - 36 per kg), gur (Rs 30 - 50 per kg), eggs (Rs 42 - 55 per dozen), LPG (Rs 550 - 660 per 11-kg cylinder), and firewood (Rs 120 - 280 per 40-kg) etc.