Pakistan’s CPI-based inflation rises to 7.2%

According to figures released Friday by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the country’s annual inflation rate in October 2024 was 7.2%, up from 6.9% in September but far lower than the 26.8% reported in October 2023.
Ahead of the nation’s central bank meeting next week to review the policy rate, which is currently at 17.5%, the report supported months of declining inflation, which reached a historic high of 38% last year and was at 26.8% in October 2023.
The average inflation for the first four months of FY2025 is 8.7%, down from 28.5% during the same period in FY2024, while the consumer price index (CPI) increased by 6.8%, exceeding both government and market projections.