Pakistan Experiences Lowest Inflation in 2.5 Years
Pakistan witnessed a significant slowdown in its Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation, with a year-on-year decrease to 11.8 percent in May 2024, compared to a rise of 17.3 percent in the previous month and a staggering 38 percent in May 2023, as reported by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
This marks the lowest inflation rate since November 2021, according to Arif Habib Limited (AHL), bringing the average inflation for the first 11 months of FY24 to 24.5 percent, down from 29.2 percent in the same period of FY23.
On a month-on-month basis, general CPI inflation decreased to -3.2 percent in May 2024, compared to a decrease of 0.4 percent in the previous month and an increase of 1.6 percent in May 2023.
Urban CPI inflation increased to 14.3 percent year-on-year in May 2024, down from 19.4 percent in the previous month and 35.1 percent in May 2023. Meanwhile, rural CPI inflation rose to 8.2 percent year-on-year in May 2024, down from 14.5 percent in the previous month and 42.2 percent in May 2023.
Similarly, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation increased to 9.9 percent year-on-year in May 2024, up from 13.9 percent in the previous month and 32.8 percent in May 2023.
Core inflation, measured by non-food non-energy (NFNE) indicators, witnessed a mixed trend. Urban core inflation increased to 12.3 percent year-on-year in May 2024, while rural core inflation rose to 17.0 percent year-on-year in the same period.
Trimmed core inflation, measured by a 20 percent weighted trimmed mean, also showed variations. Urban trimmed core inflation increased to 11.0 percent year-on-year in May 2024, while rural trimmed core inflation rose to 10.6 percent year-on-year in the same period.
