As anticipated in the event of rising prices of essential items, Pakistan\u2019s latest inflation data present policymakers with fraught choices. Inflation figures based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), show retail prices of the non-food items and food items gain on a resurgent trajectory with staple grain prices leading the charge. The country has experienced an unprecedented 25.02 per cent inflation in the last six months (July-December) of 2022 when compared to the same period in the previous year. In the category of staple grains, the prices of food-items observed an upward trend on Month-to-Month (MoM) basis. The rise ranges from wheat flour 3.66 per cent, eggs 9.71 per cent, wheat 9.45 per cent, sugar 3.12 per cent, milk fresh 1.5 per cent and pulses 0.32 per cent. The government\u2019s index on inflation claims to have more negative impact at about 28 per cent for rural areas which makes more than two third of the total population of the country, compared to urban counterparts who face 21.6 per cent inflation at the end of the year.
\nThe forecast for food prices, therefore, remains clouded with uncertainty in rural areas of the country, at least in the six-months of 2022, with the risks tilted to the upside. The constant depreciation against the dollar in last months of the past year has further roiled the outlook for price stability of staple gains, with imported inflation hard to counter through monetary measures. As PBS has noted in the central bank\u2019s Monetary Policy Committee meeting last month, Pakistan is a \u201cnet commodity importer, with over a third of the CPI being imported\u201d complicates policymaking, especially in the terms of unfavorable trade turnover.
\nA similar trend of increase is also observed among the non-food items. The prices of items showing increase include motor fuel 49.65 per cent, washing soap, detergents and match box 46.65 per cent, stationary 46 per cent, construction input items 30.62 per cent, woolen readymade garments 24.12 per cent, household servant 20.46 per cent and construction wages 24.12 per cent.
\nBesides security challenges, the National Security Council (NSC) meeting which was chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and attended by key ministers, services chiefs and top intelligence officials deliberated over the deepening economic crises in the country. In view of the ongoing economic meltdown, the NSC has agreed to take all stakeholders onboard for a speedy economic recovery and fast track economic roadmap. It is a positive development that after a long tussle and standoff, which kept the country\u2019s future hostage, prudent national consensus will finally lead to resolve the issue of inflation and will usher in people-centric economic policies that would certainly improve the standard of life in the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As anticipated in the event of rising prices of essential items, Pakistan\u2019s latest inflation data present policymakers with fraught choices. Inflation figures based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), show retail prices of the non-food items and food items gain on a resurgent trajectory with staple grain […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[12008],"class_list":{"0":"post-305353","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-editorial","7":"tag-fraught-choices"},"yoast_head":"\n