The prices of 46 items, out of the 53 included in the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), have shown increase as compared to the corresponding week of the last year. The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) year-on-year of 53 essential daily use items for week ending on August 31 has shown 10.46 percent increase as compared to the corresponding week of last year.
The percentage of combined SPI, which had risen to double digits in the past three weeks, has shown some decline. The weekly bulletin of Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS) shows that year-on-year basis the rise in the prices of some necessities and kitchen items have visibly increased.
These items are tomatoes 220.28 percent, LPG 28.40 percent; gram pulse 40.13 percent; sugar 26 percent; moong pulse 48.79 percent; potatoes 14.16 percent; mash pulse 60.64 percent; chicken farm 21.77 percent; tea 11.62 percent; salt 18.93 percent; kerosene 14.10 percent; firewood 21.39 percent; gas 20.39 percent; petrol 9.65 percent; and diesel 11.92 percent, which hit most the low-income group.
The SPI bulletin, based on data of 53 items from 17 urban centres, showed that 17 items registered increase, and 13 items showed decline, while prices of 23 items remained unchanged with reference to previous week''s prices.
The FBS figures show that though the prices of 23 items posted no change during the week, several items are now costlier as compared to the corresponding week of last year. For example, diesel increased by 11.92 percent, petrol 9.65 percent, gas 20.39 percent, kerosene 14.10 percent, firewood 21.39 percent, salt 18.93 percent, match box 6.56 percent, mutton 15 percent and beef by 13 percent.