Weekly inflation rises slightly as onion, tomato prices go up

ISLAMABAD: Inflation based on the Sensitive Price Index (SPI) recorded a slight increase of 0.05 percent for the week ending August 7, 2025, compared to a 0.35 percent rise in the previous week, according to official data.

The weekly uptick was driven mainly by higher prices of onions, which surged 16.53 percent. Tomatoes rose 10.17 percent, chicken 4.12 percent, eggs 1.32 percent, diesel 0.52 percent, masoor pulse 0.34 percent, prepared tea 0.31 percent, mustard oil 0.20 percent, cigarettes 0.12 percent, firewood 0.08 percent, and fresh milk 0.05 percent.

In contrast, prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) fell 3.21 percent, petrol dropped 2.75 percent, bananas 1.56 percent, moong pulse 1.09 percent, maash pulse 1.07 percent, potatoes 0.44 percent, sugar 0.37 percent, garlic 0.36 percent, basmati and broken rice 0.28 percent, and wheat flour 0.24 percent.

Of the 51 essential items tracked, prices of 12 items (23.53 percent) increased, 12 items (23.53 percent) fell, while 27 items (52.94 percent) remained unchanged.

Mixed annual trend as some essentials get costlier

On a year-on-year basis, the SPI showed an overall increase of 1.73 percent. The biggest annual rises were seen in the prices of ladies’ sandals (55.62 percent), gas charges for the first quarter (29.85 percent), sugar (21.75 percent), beef (14.15 percent), vegetable ghee 1kg (11.58 percent) and 2.5kg (12.20 percent), moong pulse (12.09 percent), firewood (11.22 percent), gur (10.94 percent), cooked beef (9.31 percent), bananas (9.29 percent) and printed lawn fabric (7.32 percent).

The biggest yearly declines came in onions (55.34 percent), garlic (26.43 percent), maash pulse (22.99 percent), wheat flour (22.01 percent), tomatoes (21.42 percent), branded tea (17.93 percent), potatoes (16.91 percent), electricity charges for the first quarter (10.02 percent), gram pulse (9.87 percent) and LPG (5.68 percent).

SPI rises across most income groups

For income groups earning up to Rs17,732 a month, the SPI rose 0.30 percent to 316.97 points, compared to 316.01 points last week. For those earning between Rs17,732 and Rs22,888, it increased 0.26 percent to 316.92 points. Households with incomes between Rs22,889 and Rs29,517 saw a 0.19 percent rise to 339.77 points.

The SPI for the Rs29,518–Rs44,175 income group edged up 0.14 percent to 327.62 points, while the highest income group, earning above Rs44,175, recorded a 0.06 percent decline to 327.66 points.

Overall, the combined SPI for all expenditure groups stood at 328.12 points, up from 327.94 points a week earlier, reflecting the slight 0.05 percent rise in weekly inflation.