ISLAMABAD: Short-term inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), has witnessed a slight decrease in Pakistan, the country’s statistics bureau said this week, after increasing for three weeks in a row.
The SPI, which comprises 51 essential items collected from 50 markets in 17 cities, is computed on a weekly basis to assess the price movement of essential commodities at a shorter interval of time to review the price situation in the country.
The SPI for the week ending on Jan. 2 decreased 0.26 percent on a week-on-week basis, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). Weekly inflation last decreased by 0.34 percent in Pakistan in the week ending on Dec. 5.
“During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 18 (35.29 percent) items increased, 10 (19.61 percent) items decreased and 23 (45.10 percent) items remained stable,” the PBS said in its report.
Major decrease was observed in the prices of tomatoes (13.48 percent), electricity charges for Q1 (7.48 percent), potatoes (5.59 percent), eggs (0.23 percent), garlic (0.21 percent), liquefied petroleum gas (0.18 percent) and wheat flour (0.09 percent).
The items whose prices increased during the week included chicken (10.28 percent), onions (4.93 percent), bananas (1.68 percent), diesel (1.18 percent), sugar (0.95 percent), jaggery (0.58 percent), vegetable ghee 2.5 Kg (0.53 percent) and petrol (0.21 percent).
Pakistan’s annual consumer inflation eased further to 4.1 percent in Dec. 2024, according to the PBS. Consumer inflation cooled from 4.9 percent in November, a sharp drop from a multi-decade high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023.
Pakistan weekly inflation records slight decrease after rising for three consecutive weeks
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Pakistan weekly inflation records slight decrease after rising for three consecutive weeks
- Major decrease observed in prices of tomatoes, electricity, potatoes, eggs, liquefied petroleum gas and wheat flour
- Pakistan’s annual consumer inflation eased further to 4.1 percent in Dec. 2024, according to the country’s statistics bureau
Pakistan warns climate shocks threaten food security, urges water resilience at Berlin forum
- Government cites floods, droughts and heat as major hits to farm output and rural livelihoods
- Pakistan also raises concern over India’s decision to unilaterally suspend Indus Waters Treaty
KARACHI: Pakistan’s food security is under growing threat from increasingly frequent floods, droughts and extreme heat, which have sharply affected agricultural productivity and rural livelihoods, a senior minister said while addressing an international conference on Saturday, emphasizing the need to strengthen water resilience in a climate-stressed region.
Speaking at the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) 2026 in Berlin, Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain said climate-induced shocks had exposed the vulnerability of Pakistan’s agriculture, which relies heavily on the Indus Basin for food production and employment.
“Climate-induced shocks have severely affected agricultural productivity, rural livelihoods and national food security,” Hussain said, adding that recent floods and prolonged dry spells had reinforced the urgency of shifting toward water resilience.
Pakistan’s food system depends on the Indus river system, which supports agriculture, industry and ecosystems for more than 240 million people. Hussain said water security was fundamental to food security and stressed that cooperation over shared water resources was essential for regional stability.
Addressing transboundary water challenges, he reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to international water law and described the Indus Waters Treaty as a cornerstone of regional water stability. He expressed concern over India’s April 2025 announcement to unilaterally hold the treaty “in abeyance,” calling the Indus river system a lifeline for Pakistan and urging the international community to support the treaty’s full implementation.
On domestic policy, Hussain said Pakistan was pursuing reforms to improve water productivity through high-efficiency irrigation, climate-smart farming practices and drought- and heat-tolerant seed varieties, alongside ecosystem-based measures such as watershed rehabilitation and groundwater recharge.
He said Pakistan remained ready to work with international partners to advance climate-smart agriculture and inclusive food systems, aiming to transform water from a source of risk into a foundation for sustainable development and peace.
