ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday said Pakistan had done better than other countries amid an “unprecedented” hike in the international commodity prices, caused by the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Pakistan’s annual inflation rate rose to 9.2 percent in October, up from 9 percent in previous months, the country’s statistics bureau said earlier this month.
The South Asian nation is facing historic inflationary pressure due to rising prices of commodities in the international market, including petroleum products.
The price of petrol recently shot up to Rs145.82 a liter, which is expected to send commodity prices and inflation further up, but the prime minister believes that his country has been faring “much better.”
“While an unprecedented rise in commodity prices internationally has adversely affected most countries in the world as a result of Covid lockdowns, Pakistan mashaAllah (God willing) has fared relatively much better,” PM Khan said in a Twitter post.
In his tweet, the prime minister also shared a video clip of Finance Ministry spokesperson Muzammil Aslam, who rubbished the notion of Pakistan’s dwindling economy.
Quoting data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Aslam said food prices increased by 1.9 percent, World Cereal Index by 3.2 percent, edible oil prices by 9.6 percent, and dairy products by 2.6 percent from September to October this year.
He said despite rising inflation worldwide, Pakistan’s exports recorded an increase of 17 percent in October and were likely to touch $30 billion mark this year.
Consequent to the government’s timely measures, non-oil imports of the country reduced by 12.5 percent in October, tax collection surged by 32 percent, according to the Finance Ministry spokesman.
“All this shows that the country’s economy is heading fast and employment would be required in the coming days,” the state-run APP news agency quoted Aslam as saying.
“All these things will appear on the ground in coming days.”
