Islamabad: The National Price Monitoring Committee, chaired by the Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, reported a significant decline in inflation rates, marking a positive trend over the past year. The meeting, held on October 8, 2024, in Islamabad, detailed these developments, noting a decrease from 38.0% in May 2023 to a four-year low of 6.9% in September 2024.
According to Press Information Department, representatives from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) presented detailed insights into the current inflation situation, highlighting a substantial decline in both urban and rural food inflation. Urban food inflation has reduced dramatically to 1.7% from 33.9% over the year, while rural food inflation has turned negative, contrasting sharply with the 35.4% recorded last year. Significant reductions were also noted in the prices of wheat flour and petrol, which decreased by 37.1% and 20% respectively, compared to the previous year.
The session also addressed discrepancies between wholesale and retail prices of essential commodities, as well as the inadequate translation of reduced petroleum prices to lower transport service rates. In response, Minister Iqbal directed provincial governments to take immediate actions to adjust transport, wholesale, and retail prices accordingly. Both Minister Iqbal and the Minister for Petroleum, Mussadiq Malik, emphasized the government’s commitment to providing relief to the populace and stressed the importance of strict enforcement of price control measures across the provinces and the Islamabad Capital Territory.