ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended January 27, 2022 recorded a decrease of 0.11 percent due to decrease in prices of food items including chillies powdered (9.05 percent), potatoes (4.03 percent), onions (2.86 percent), eggs (2.19 percent), chicken (1.71 percent), sugar (1.14 percent), and non-food item LPG (2.04 percent), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The year-on-year trend depicts increase of 18.62 percent mainly due to increase in electricity for Q1 (81.39 percent), tomatoes (75.11 percent), LPG (51.90 percent), gents sponge chappal (50.25 percent), mustard oil (46.14 percent), cooking oil 5 litre (45.61 percent), gents sandal (44.49 percent), washing soap (41.74 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (41.11 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5 Kg (40.80 percent), and masoor (38.78 percent), while major decrease observed in the prices of moong (26.41 percent), chillies powdered (22.44 percent), chicken (11.19 percent), and onions (2.06 percent).
According to the latest data, the SPI went down from 167.29 percent during the week ended January 20, 2022 to 167.11 percent during the week under review.
The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,732, Rs17,733 to Rs22,888, Rs22,889 to Rs29,517, Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 and for above Rs44,175 decreased by 0.07 percent, 0.05 percent, 0.07 percent, 0.09 and 0.12 percent, respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 17 (33.33 percent) items increased, eight (15.69 percent) items decreased, and 26 (50.98 percent) items remained stable, said the PBS in weekly SPI data.
The commodities, which recorded increase in their average prices included tomatoes (30.79 percent), garlic (4.51 percent), tea prepared (1.71 percent), mustard oil (1.28 percent), pulse gram (1.18 percent), cooking oil Dalda or other similar brand (SN), 5 litre tin each (1.18 percent), maash (0.95 percent), tea Lipton Yellow Label (0.91 percent), masoor (0.72 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib or other superior quality 1kg pouch each (0.44 percent), moong (0.40 percent), vegetable ghee Dalda/Habib 2.5 kg tin each (0.28 percent), rice basmati broken (0.26 percent), beef with bone (0.25 percent), wheat flour bag 20kg (0.22 percent), mutton (0.21 percent), and firewood whole 40kg (0.14 percent).
The commodities, which recorded decrease in their prices during the period under review include chilies powder National 200 gm packet each (9.05 percent), potatoes (4.03 percent), onions (2.86 percent), eggs (2.19 percent), LPG (2.04 percent), chicken (1.71 percent), sugar (1.14 percent), and bananas (0.61 percent).
According to the PBS data, sugar prices declined from Rs92.22 per kg to Rs91.17 per kg; however, a visit to various markets revealed that sugar was being sold at Rs98-100 per kg.
Further, according to the bureau’s data wheat flour bag 20kg increased from Rs1163.97 per 20kg to Rs1166.48 per 20kg, but in actual the wheat flour was available at Rs80-90 per kg in retail.
The commodities, which prices remained unchanged during the period included bread plain (small size), Rice Irri, milk fresh, curd, gur, salt powdered, cooked daal, cooked beef, 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, petrol, match box, hi-speed diesel, telephone call charges, and toilet soap.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022