The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has released its latest weekly inflation report, showing that inflation increased by 0.91% during the past week, while the annual inflation rate climbed to 9.66%.
According to the report, prices of 22 essential commodities increased during the week, 8 items became cheaper, while prices of 21 commodities remained unchanged.
The data shows that tomatoes recorded the sharpest weekly increase, rising by 39.92%. During the same period, diesel prices increased by 15.87%, petrol by 5.23%, eggs by 7.31%, potatoes by 3.70%, LPG by 0.91%, and prepared pulses by 0.72%.
On a year-on-year basis, tomatoes witnessed an exceptional 253.04% increase in price. Other major annual increases included onions (81.55%), wheat flour (74.13%), LPG (46.87%), diesel (31.92%), and electricity tariffs (22.79%).
However, the report also noted annual price declines for several commodities. Potatoes became 32.69% cheaper, gram pulse (chana dal) declined by 21.48%, sugar by 17.67%, and chicken by 13.73% compared to the same period last year.
Economists say rising fuel and food prices continue to drive inflationary pressures, increasing the financial burden on households across the country.
