Inflation rate in Pakistan highest since 1974: WB

The rate of inflation in Pakistan is right now the highest in the last 50 years as it is for the first time since 1974 that the country is witnessing such a massive price hike.

The World Bank (WB) has attributed the price hike to an astounding increase in gas and electricity prices announced by the government in recent years.

According to the bank’s report, hike in the prices led to rising production costs.

The WB says that energy prices crossed the 50 per cent mark in the urban areas of Pakistan in the first six months of the ongoing FY to stand at 50.6 per cent.

Average inflation in the country in the first six months of the current FY stands at 28.8 per cent, while it was 25 per cent during the same period last year.

The WB says that despite falling prices of different items in the international market, the strengthening of Pak Rupee’s value and increased production of crops in the country during the period under review, this had little impact on the situation in Pakistan where the prices continued to go up.

Pakistan is implementing an ambitious, credible and clearly communicated economic reform plan critical for robust recovery and poverty reduction, the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) quoted the World Bank recently.

Pakistan’s economy is expected to grow by only 1.8 per cent in the current fiscal year ending June 2024. According to the World Bank’s latest Pakistan Development Update titled Fiscal Impact of Federal State-Owned Enterprises, this subdued recovery reflects tight monetary and fiscal policy.