ISLAMABAD   -   The weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), witnessed further decrease of 0.15 percent for the combined consumption groups during the week ended on September 05, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday. According to the PBS data, the SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group was recorded at 319.24 points as compared to 319.73 points during the past week.

As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 14.07 per cent. The weekly SPI with the base year 2015-16 =100 covers 17 urban centres and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups. Likewise, SPI for the lowest consumption group of up to Rs 17,732 witnessed decrease of 0.14 per cent and went up to 310.35 points from last week’s 310.80 points. The SPI for consumption group of Rs 17,732 to 22,888; Rs 22,889-29,517; Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175 decreased by 0.17 percent, 0.15 percent, 0.16 percent and 15 percent respectively.

During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 19 (37.25%) items increased, 13 (25.50%) items decreased and 19 (37.25%) items remained stable. The items, which recorded major decrease in their average prices on a week-on-week basis, included tomatoes (14.54%), chicken (1.55%), wheat flour (1.31%), chilies powder (1.30%), diesel (1.23%), petrol (0.68%), pulse masoor (0.59%), sugar (0.54%), pulse mash (0.49%) and cooking oil 5 litre (0.41%). The commodities, which recorded major increase in their average prices on week-on-week basis, included onions (3.83%), pulse gram (1.65%), garlic (1.38%), LPG (0.90%), cooked daal & cooked beef (0.70%) each, eggs (0.54%), potatoes (0.50%), rice basmati broken (0.34%) and georgette (0.14%).

On yearly basis, the commodities that witnessed decrease included wheat flour (37.69%), sugar (21.79%), chilies powder (20.00%), electricity charges for q1 (16.91%), diesel (15.64%), petrol (15.03%), cooking oil 5 litre (10.77%), rice basmati broken (9.52%), gur (7.92%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (6.80%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (6.00%) and washing soap (0.92%). The commodities, which recorded an increase in their average prices on year-on-year basis, included gas charges for q1 (570.00%), onions (95.92%), pulse gram (51.20%), powered milk (26.15%), beef (23.88%), shirting (23.44%), garlic (21.81%), pulse moong (19.68%), salt powder (19.15%), cooked daal (15.21%), georgette (14.01%) and energy saver (12.87%),