ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended March 25, 2021, recorded an increase of 0.61 percent over the last week due to increase in prices of food items including tomatoes (20.04 percent), chicken (8.81 percent), bread (1.64 percent), bananas (1.55 percent), wheat flour bag (1.01 percent), and sugar (0.60 percent), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
According to the latest data, the SPI went up from 146.86 points during the week ended March 18, 2021 to 147.76 points during the week under review.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 22 (43.14 percent) items increased, 07 (13.72 percent) items decreased, and 22 (43.14 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 15.35 percent with most of the items increased mainly chilies powder National pack (139.64 percent), chicken (96.33 percent), electricity for Q1 (69.19), gents sponge chappal (25.13 percent), washing soap (21.41 percent), and sugar (20.54 percent), while a major decrease was observed in the price of onions (50.73 percent), garlic (44.85 percent), LPG (13.88 percent), potatoes (12.96 percent), and pulse moong (2.68 percent).
The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,733, from Rs17,733 to Rs22,888, Rs22,889 to Rs29,517, Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 and above Rs44,175 per month increased by 0.52 percent, 0.59 percent, 0.60 percent, 0.64 percent, and 61 percent respectively.
The commodities, which recorded increase in their average prices include tomatoes (20.04 percent), chicken (8.81 percent), bread plain (1.64 percent), bananas (1.55 percent), wheat flour bag 20kg (1.01 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib or other superior quality 1kg pouch each (0.97 percent), mustard oil (0.80 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib 2.5kg tin each (0.74 percent), cooking oil Dalda or other similar brand (sn), 5 litre tin each (0.70 percent), sugar (0.60 percent), pulse masoor (0.59 percent), toilet soap Lifebuoy (0.58 percent), cooked beef (0.48 percent), beef with bone (0.39 percent), eggs (0.36 percent), curd (0.23 percent), maash (0.20 percent), mutton (0.16 percent), gram (0.12 percent), cooked daal (0.10 percent), milk fresh (0.09 percent), and rice irri-6/9 (0.05 percent).
According to the PBS, decrease was observed in the price of garlic (8.12 percent), onions (2.27 percent), potatoes (1.98 percent), LPG (0.66 percent), moong (0.54 percent), rice basmati broken (0.28 percent), and gur (0.20 percent).
The items whose prices remained unchanged during the period under review included powered milk, salt powdered, tea Lipton Yellow Label, gents sandal Bata pair, gents sponge chappal Bata pair, ladies sandal Bata pair, gas charges, energy saver Philips, match box, petrol super, hi-speed diesel per liter, and telephone call charges.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021