ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ended July 21, 2022, recorded a decline of 0.22% due to a decrease in the prices of food items including tomatoes (7.04%), bananas (3.34%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (1.14%), sugar (0.44%) and non-food items diesel (14.62%) and petrol (7.41%), says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 32.82% mainly due to an increase in diesel (106.16%), petrol (103.34%), masoor (91.29%), onions (88.46%), vegetable ghee 1kg (76.85%), mustard oil (75.78%), cooking oil 5 litre (75.35%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (71.71%), washing soap (60.25%), chicken (58.41%), gents sponge chappal (52.21%), pulse gram (51.46%), garlic (43.70%) and LPG (40.47%),while major decrease observed in the prices of chillies powdered (43.42%), sugar (15.51%), tomatoes (6.18%), gur (2.72%), and moong (0.72%).

According to the latest data, the SPI went down from 200.55% during the week ended July 14, 2022 to 200.10% during the week under review.

The SPI for the consumption groups up to Rs17,732, Rs17,733 to Rs22,888 and Rs22,889 to Rs29,517 increased by 0.33%, 0.22% and 0.13%, however, for the group Rs29,518 to Rs44,175 and for above Rs44,175 it decreased by 0.05% and 0.48% respectively.

During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 31 (60.78%) items increased, 11 (21.57%) items decreased and nine (17.65%) items remained stable, says the PBS.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022