Pakistan's short-term inflation stays in double digits at 11.53%
Short-term inflation in Pakistan stayed in double digits for the week ended October 1, with the Sensitive Price Indicator up 11.53% from a year earlier, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said. The index rose 0.21% week-on-week to 370.46 points from 369.69 a week earlier. The annual pace eased from 11.92% in the previous reading, but remained well above single digits.
The pass-through from the US-Israel war with Iran, which has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz since early 2026, remained visible in the annual fuel bill. Diesel was 44.50% dearer than a year ago at Rs402.53 a litre and petrol was up 44.05% at Rs389.51. Liquefied petroleum gas, widely used for cooking, rose 1.17% in the week to Rs5,103 for an 11.67kg cylinder and was 66.59% higher than last October, while electricity charges for the first quarter were up 58.59% on the year.
There was some relief at the pump. Diesel fell 3.43% and petrol 0.65% over the week, in line with a partial recovery in crude flows, even as supply of refined products remained tight.
Food showed a split picture. Chicken jumped 7.25% in the week to Rs365.31 a kilogramme and was 13.60% higher than a year ago, while garlic rose 1.85%, gram pulse 1.30% and eggs 0.72%. Onions, up only 0.39% in the week, were 114.20% costlier than a year earlier at Rs189.42 a kilogramme, and wheat flour was up 32.65%, with a 20kg bag at Rs2,697. Mutton was 15.07% higher, beef 12.90% and fresh milk 8.10%. Offsets came from perishables and sweeteners: tomatoes were 45.52% cheaper than last year, potatoes 39.54% and sugar 21.95%, and eggs, despite the weekly rise, remained 17.47% below last October.
Of the 51 items tracked in 50 markets across 17 cities, prices of 20 rose, 10 fell and 21 were unchanged. The burden was uneven. The lowest spending group saw a 0.19% weekly rise and a 9% annual increase, while the highest quintile recorded an 11.99% year-on-year rise, against 11.53% for the combined index. It is pertinent to mention that the monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 10.3% year-on-year in September 2026, which was lower than the increase of 11.1% year-on-year in August.
