ISLAMABAD: Showing signs it has finally started cooling off, Pakistan’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) based inflation was recorded at 17.3 percent year-on-year in April — the lowest in nearly two years and well below the government’s expectations, latest data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed on Thursday.
The economy had been battling with inflation topping 20 percent since May 2022, peaking at a staggering 38 percent last May and these skyrocketing inflation rates coincided with the reforms implemented as part of a much-needed International Monetary Fund bailout programme.
Pakistan’s July-April Average Inflation
As per the latest data, July to April average inflation settled at 25.97 percent in contrast to 28.23 percent in the corresponding period last year.
The Ministry of Finance in its “Monthly Economic Update and Outlook” released on Tuesday, forecasted that CPI-based inflation to be around 18.5-19.5 percent in April, and slow down further in the coming months.
The ministry said the inflation outlook for the last month had been on a downward trajectory mainly due to favourable base effects from the previous year and improvements in the domestic supply chain of essential items.
Even before the IMF approved a 1.1 billion dollar loan instalment under a previously agreed-upon programme, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) held its key interest rate at a high of 22 percent.
