Caretakers also leave double-digit inflation

Pakistan’s inflation rate slightly moderated to 28.3% in January 2024 but prices in all groups of commodities showed a double-digit rise, an outcome of frequent increases in energy prices to meet conditions of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) loan programme and supply disruptions. The 28.3% inflation was in line with the projection of the Ministry of Finance, which a day earlier significantly raised its old forecast. The interim government too is leaving behind a high inflation as general elections are slated for February 8 after which a new government will take over. For many years, forecasts of the federal government and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have proved incorrect. Now, price stability is the primary objective of the central bank after it was granted autonomy two years ago under an IMF deal. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported a slight moderation in inflation, both in urban and rural areas. But the inflation was still higher than the two-month-old projection, which both the central bank and the finance ministry later revised upwards.