
Weekly SPI inflation up 1.03pc
Major increase has been observed in the prices of chicken (15.95 per cent), eggs (8.34 per cent), sugar (1.97 per cent), long cloth (1.74 per cent), powdered milk (1.59 per cent), gur (1.48 per cent), pulse gram (0.94 per cent), lawn printed (0.77 per cent), mutton (0.62 per cent), cooked beef (0.49 per cent) and energy saver (0.31 per cent), says Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Weekly SPI inflation up 0.24pc
The year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 1.29 per cent, ladies sandal (55.62 per cent), chicken (47.22 per cent), moong (29.02 per cent), powdered milk (24.02 per cent), sugar (21.87 per cent), bananas (20.80 per cent), pulse gram (20.74 per cent), beef (18.00 per cent), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (13.62 per cent), LPG (12.13 per cent), lawn printed (11.18 per cent) and firewood (10.44 per cent), while a major decrease is observed in the prices of onions (53.29 per cent), garlic (33.18 per cent), potatoes (29.84 per cent), electricity charges for q1 (29.40 per cent), tomatoes (23.61 per cent), wheat flour (21.02 per cent), tea Lipton (17.93 per cent), maash (16.27 per cent), chilies powder (12.30 per cent), petrol (7.43 per cent) and diesel (6.30per cent).
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Express Tribune
10 hours ago
- Express Tribune
SPI rises 0.73% on food, fuel surge
Listen to article The Sensitive Price Index (SPI) for the week ending July 3, 2025, posted a week-on-week (WoW) increase of 0.73%, driven largely by a surge in food and fuel prices. However, on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, SPI recorded a decline of 2.06%, reflecting a mixed trend of inflation across essential consumer goods. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) and Arif Habib Limited (AHL), significant weekly increases were observed in the prices of chicken (13.05%), onions (11.62%), tomatoes (11.09%), garlic (5.40%), diesel (3.94%), potatoes (3.58%), petrol (3.22%), and sugar (1.27%). Smaller hikes were also noted in cooked daal, gur, curd, and powdered milk. Conversely, a decrease was reported in LPG prices (-8.53%), bananas (-3.36%), eggs (-0.59%), mustard oil (-0.37%), pulse moong (-0.30%), and pulse gram (-0.29%). Out of 51 essential items tracked during the week, 18 (35.29%) recorded price increases, 6 (11.77%) declined, while the prices of 27 (52.94%) remained stable. On a yearly basis, inflation has visibly cooled, with several essential commodities seeing steep price drops. Tomatoes led the decline with a YoY fall of 61.42%, followed by onions (-53.71%), electricity charges for the lowest income quintile (-37.62%), garlic (-24.29%), wheat flour (-23.62%), pulse mash (-20.27%), and Lipton tea (-17.93%). Other notable declines included potatoes, pulse masoor, IRRI-6/9 rice, chilli powder, and bread. However, YoY prices surged for a few key food and non-food items. Ladies' sandals recorded a sharp increase of 55.62%, sugar rose by 27.78%, pulse moong by 20.59%, powdered milk by 16.01%, and beef by 15.45%. Prices of vegetable ghee, gur, firewood, lawn fabric, cooked daal, and cooked beef also registered double-digit annual increases. The group-wise SPI breakdown showed that all income groups experienced weekly inflation, with the second quintile (Q2) seeing the highest WoW increase of 0.80%, and the highest income group (Q5) recording a 0.70% increase. YoY inflation was negative across all groups, with the most substantial decline of 3.93% seen in Q2. The combined index stood at 312.06 points, down from 318.61 points a year earlier. A look at the historical trend of SPI YoY change reveals that since April 2025, prices have generally remained in negative territory. The sharpest YoY deflation was seen in April at -3.66%, followed by a brief recovery in May. The latest YoY figure of -2.06% reinforces the disinflationary pattern, though the recent weekly spike signals continued volatility in perishable food and fuel categories. Furthermore, the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) is expected to edge lower to 3.2% YoY in June 2025, supported by a favourable base effect, according to Optimus Capital Management. On a monthly basis, NCPI is projected to inch up by 0.2% MoM, driven primarily by a 0.6% rise in the housing index and a 0.7% increase in the clothing index. In contrast, the food index is anticipated to decline by 0.2% MoM, helping to moderate the overall inflation reading. A correction in gold prices and the supportive base are also likely to bring core inflation down to 7.3% YoY, marking a 0.6 percentage point decline from the previous month. Electricity prices are expected to rise by 5.7% MoM in June after falling for seven consecutive months. This increase is attributed to a Rs1.22/kWh hike in the Fuel Cost Adjustment (FCA) and its application to previously protected consumer categories. Meanwhile, the food index is expected to remain largely flat on a monthly basis, as sharp weekly increases in perishable items like tomatoes (+59%) and potatoes (+26%) are likely to be offset by a 32% week-on-week drop in chicken prices, according to SPI data. The recent revision in gas tariffs, including higher fixed charges for domestic users, is estimated to result in a 23% MoM jump in the gas price index, based on the previous methodology used by the PBS, which had earlier drawn criticism. Despite the surge, the impact on YoY NCPI is estimated at 0.71%.


Business Recorder
13 hours ago
- Business Recorder
FPCCI seeks withdrawal of Rs77/lit PL on FO
ISLAMABAD: The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to immediately withdraw the Petroleum Levy (PL) of Rs 77 per litre imposed on Furnace Oil (FO), effective July 1, 2025. The industry body warned that the decision could trigger mass industrial closures, layoffs, and a serious blow to exports. In a formal letter to the Prime Minister, FPCCI highlighted the severe consequences of the newly introduced Petroleum Levy, along with an additional Carbon Levy (CL) of Rs 2.5 per litre under the Finance Bill 2025-26. While acknowledging the government's broader fiscal and sustainability goals, FPCCI stated that the policy 'does not reflect economic ground realities' and poses a direct threat to the survival of Pakistan's industrial and export sectors. PL imposition on furnace oil: OICCI urges authorities to engage with key stakeholders According to FPCCI, the new levy has pushed the price of Furnace Oil beyond Rs 82,000 per metric ton—an over 80% increase. A mid-sized industrial unit consuming 20 metric tons of FO per day now faces an added cost burden of Rs 1.64 million per day or nearly Rs 50 million per month. 'For most industrial users, this is not a cost adjustment—it is a make-or-break moment,' FPCCI warned. Many industrial firms had switched to FO-based captive power generation after gas-based production became economically unviable due to the Grid Transition Levy (GTL), while grid connectivity remained limited, especially in older industrial zones and semi-urban clusters. 'Grid extensions and sanctioned load enhancements typically take 3 to 5 years. These industries cannot switch overnight. Without gas or grid access, furnace oil is their only operational lifeline,' the letter stated. Several major manufacturers and exporters had invested heavily in FO-based engines in recent years, based on policy stability. With FO now costing over Rs 185 per litre, captive generation costs have soared to Rs 48–52 per unit—well above grid rates. 'These firms cannot revert to gas or switch to the grid. Exports worth over $1.5 billion from these firms alone are now at direct risk, with cancelled orders, missed deadlines, and unviable pricing looming,' FPCCI warned. It noted that some companies have already begun shutdown procedures. The letter also stressed that Furnace Oil is an unavoidable by-product of crude refining. If it becomes un-sellable domestically or unprofitable to export, refiners are forced to reduce operations—affecting the supply of petrol, diesel, and jet fuel. 'This has already occurred several times in the past 18 months. Refiners have had to export FO at a loss just to keep plants running,' FPCCI noted, warning of a potential halt in domestic refining operations. FO-based thermal power plants, which are essential for emergency ramp-ups during peak demand and grid instability, will also be affected. With FO becoming unaffordable, power producers may stop stockpiling it—raising the risk of load-shedding and grid instability during summer. Thousands of oil tankers that rely on FO for transport face an existential crisis, with potential spillover into broader fuel logistics and employment sectors. Cement producers, who use FO for kiln operations or emergency power, could see energy costs rise by over Rs 300 million per year for a 2,000 MT/day kiln. Glass manufacturers that run high-temperature furnaces on FO would also be severely affected, as energy constitutes up to 30 percent of their total cost. 'Furnace stoppages destroy molten batches and damage equipment. Temporary shutdowns in this sector are economically ruinous,' FPCCI said, adding that thousands of skilled and semi-skilled workers could lose their jobs. After a comprehensive review by its Energy Advisory Committee, FPCCI concluded that the policy would not generate revenue, as the product it seeks to tax—Furnace Oil—would effectively vanish from the market due to its unviable economics. 'This is not a tax problem. It is an economic survival issue,' FPCCI emphasized. It proposed the following three corrective measures: (i) immediate withdrawal of the Rs 77/litre Petroleum Levy on Furnace Oil; (ii) uniform application of a nominal Carbon Levy of Rs 2.5/litre, aligned with rates on petrol and diesel; and (iii) a phased approach, gradually increasing the levy to Rs 5/litre only after viable alternatives (gas or grid) become available to industrial users. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025


Business Recorder
13 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Pricing mechanism across country: DCs directed to analyse wholesale, retail prices regularly
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal directed all deputy commissioners of the provinces to compare wholesale and retail prices regularly and take corrective action where necessary. The minister urged the provincial governments to actively supervise and support this process. He also directed the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) to provide login reports to chief secretaries on a monthly basis. Federal Minister for Planning chaired a meeting of the National Price Monitoring Committee (NPMC) in Islamabad on Friday to review the inflationary trends and pricing mechanism across the country. The meeting was attended by the chief economist, chief statistician, senior officials from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, and representatives from relevant federal and provincial departments. He emphasised the importance of effective monitoring through the Price Scorecard system. He highlighted during the meeting that the chief secretary of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accessed the system 114 times, while Sindh accessed it only 10 times, Punjab 6 times, and Balochistan did not log in at all. Among Deputy Commissioners, Islamabad logged in 27 times, Karachi 6 times, and Quetta 4 times. The minister expressed serious concern over the underutilisation of the Price Scorecard by provincial administrations. The meeting was informed that prices of several essential items, including LPG, bananas, mustard oil, chickpeas, and moong dal, have decreased. However, sugar prices have surged, reaching nearly Rs190 per kilogramme in most cities. The country has witnessed a decline in sugar production this year, with output falling to 5.8 million tons from 6.8 million tons. In response, the Ministry of Food has decided to import 0.5 million tons of sugar to stabilise the market. During the meeting, the Chief Statistician presented key data indicating that the inflation rate for the fiscal year 2024-25 stood at 4.5 per cent, significantly down from 23.4 per cent recorded during the previous year. Minister Iqbal highlighted this as the lowest inflation rate in the past nine years, reflecting the government's effective policy interventions and improved supply-side management. In urban areas, food inflation was recorded at 4.2 per cent, compared to 6.2 per cent last year. However, supply chain disruptions due to highway closures in Sindh were noted as a contributing factor in localised price fluctuations. Minister Iqbal also called for the development of an advance supply and demand plan for the upcoming Ramadan to avoid shortages and price hikes. He appreciated the stability in food prices during Eidul Azha and stressed the need to maintain this momentum through coordinated efforts among federal and provincial stakeholders. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025