ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended January 20, 2022 recorded a decrease of 0.06 percent due to decrease in prices of food items including chicken (7.74 percent), onions (4.47 percent), potatoes (1.89 percent), eggs (1.67 percent), sugar (0.39 percent), and non-food item electricity for Q1 (1.88 percent), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The year-on-year trend depicts increase of 19.36 percent mainly due to increase in electricity for Q1 (81.39 percent), LPG (52.39 percent), gents sponge chappal (50.25 percent), cooking oil 5 litre (49.83 percent), mustard oil (46.28 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (45.88 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5kg (45.40 percent), washing soap (44.79 percent), gents sandal (44.49 percent), masoor (38.55 percent), petrol (34.87 percent), and diesel (27.35 percent), while major decrease was observed in the prices of moong (27.20 percent), chillies powdered (6.71 percent), tomatoes (6.04 percent), and onions (1.47 percent).
According to the latest data, the SPI went down from 167.39 percent during the week ended January 13, 2022 to 167.29 percent during the week under review.
The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,732 increased by 0.02 percent, while for Rs 17,733 to Rs 22,888, Rs 22,889 to Rs 29,517, Rs 29,518 to Rs 44,175 and for above Rs 44,175 decreased by 0.13 percent, 0.05 percent, 0.01 percent, and 0.01 percent, respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 24 (47.06 percent) items increased, seven (13.72 percent) items decreased, and 20 (39.22 percent) items remained stable, said the PBS in weekly SPI data.
The commodities, which recorded increase in their average prices included tomatoes (35.27 percent), garlic (3.79 percent), match box each (3.10 percent), hi-speed diesel per litre (2.09 percent), petrol super per litre (2.07 percent), firewood whole 40kg (2.01 percent), beef with bone (1.60 percent), pulse gram (1.52 percent), mutton (1.45 percent), bananas (1.03 percent), mustard oil (0.98 percent), powdered milk Nido 390gm polybag each (0.97 percent), energy saver (0.75 percent), maash (0.47 percent), shirting (0.43 percent), wheat flour bag 20kg (0.27 percent), rice basmati broken (0.19 percent), cooked beef (0.14 percent), cooking oil Dalda or other similar brand (sn), 5 litre tin each (0.14 percent), cooked daal (0.11 percent), milk fresh (0.11 percent), LPG (0.10 percent), curd (0.05 percent), and rice irri-6/9 (0.04 percent).
The commodities, which recorded decrease in their prices during the period under review include chicken (7.74 percent), onions (4.47 percent), potatoes (1.89 percent), electricity charges for q1 per unit (1.88 percent), eggs (1.67 percent), moong (0.89 percent), and sugar (0.39 percent).
According to the PBS data, sugar prices declined from Rs 92.58 per kg to Rs 92.22 per kg; however, a visit to various markets revealed that sugar was being sold at Rs 98-100 per kg.
Further, according to the bureau’s data wheat flour bag 20kg increased from Rs 1,160.85 to Rs 1,163.97 per kg, but in actual the wheat flour was available at Rs 80-90 per kg in retail.
The commodities, which prices remained unchanged during the period included bread plain (small size), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib 2.5kg tin each, vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib or other superior quality 1kg pouch each, masoor (washed), gur, salt powdered (National/Shan), chilies powder National, tea Lipton Yellow Label, tea prepared, cigarettes Capstan, Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, lawn printed Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, Georgette, gents sandal Bata pair, gents sponge chappal Bata pair, ladies sandal Bata pair, gas charges, Sufi washing soap, telephone call charges, and toilet soap.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022