Weekly inflation up by 0.62pc

The Sensitive Price Index (SPI) registered an increase of 0.62 per cent for the lowest income group (up to Rs3,000) in the week ended September 24 over the previous week.The SPI for the lowest income bracket was recorded at 238.83 as against 237.37 in the previous week, according provisional figures released by the Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS) on Monday.

The weekly SPI is computed with base 2000-2001=100 covering 17 urban centres and 53 essential items for all income groups and combined. The SPI for the combined group registered an increase of 0.72 per cent, up from 227.70 in the previous week to 229.33 in the week under review.As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for combined group in the week under review witnessed increase of 10.20 per cent.As compared to last week, the SPI for the group falling in the income bracket of Rs3,001-5000, Rs5001-12,000 and above Rs12,000 increased by 0.66 per cent, 0.70 per cent and 0.67 per cent respectively.

During the week under review average prices of five items registered decrease, while that of 18 items increase with the remaining 30 items remained unchanged.The items recorded decrease in their average prices were curd, gram pulse (washed), gur, masoor pulse (washed) and bananas.

Those items registered increase were tomatoes, chicken (farm), potatoes, onions, egg hen (farm), beef, mutton, garlic, wheat flour (average quality), salt (powdered), sugar, firewood, LPG(11-kg cylinder), mash pulse (washed), red chillies, wheat (average quality), moong pulse (washed) and vegetable ghee (loose).