Pakistan Inflation Accelerates Sharply in April

(MENAFN) Pakistan's headline inflation accelerated sharply in April, nearly doubling from the previous month's reading to hit 10.9 percent year on year — a significant uptick that will intensify scrutiny of the country's monetary trajectory, official data released Friday revealed.

Figures published by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics showed that the Consumer Price Index climbed 10.9 percent annually in April, a steep rise from the 7.3 percent recorded in March. On a month-on-month basis, prices increased by 2.5 percent, more than double the 1.2 percent rise logged the month prior.

The inflationary surge was broad-based, cutting across both urban and rural economies. Urban inflation jumped to 11.1 percent year on year in April from 7.4 percent in March, while rural inflation climbed to 10.6 percent from 7.2 percent over the same period, according to the bureau's data.

Monthly price pressures told a similar story. Urban CPI inflation rose 2.7 percent in April against a 1.3 percent increase in March, while rural inflation advanced 2.1 percent, accelerating from just 1 percent the previous month.

Viewed across a longer horizon, the data points to a notable deterioration in price stability. Average inflation during the first ten months of the current fiscal year reached 6.19 percent — a marked climb from the 4.73 percent recorded during the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.

The April reading is likely to renew pressure on policymakers at the State Bank of Pakistan to reassess the pace and direction of monetary easing, at a time when the country's economic recovery remains fragile.

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