Inflation jumps to 48-year high of 27.6pc in January

The annual consumer inflation hit 27.6 per cent last month, the highest in 48 years, as prices of food and transport continued to remain elevated amid economic turmoil, official data showed on Wednesday. On a month-on-month basis, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures the overall change in consumer prices based on a representative basket of goods and services over time, rose 2.9pc in January, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said. Inflation in urban and rural areas increased to 24.4pc and 32.3pc year-on-year, respectively. Core inflation, which doesn’t include volatile food and energy prices, also slightly rose to 15.4pc in urban areas and 19.4pc in rural areas. Consumer prices have risen sharply over the past several months, with annual inflation staying above 20pc since June last year. Average rise in CPI hits 25.4pc this fiscal year compared to 10.3pc a year ago Year-on-year inflation of 27.6pc in January was the highest since May 1975, when it stood at 27.8pc, according to the investment firm Arif Habib Limited. The CPI figure was higher than the government’s expectation of 26pc, which itself was more than double the budgeted 11.5pc target.