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Pakistan inflation eases to 22-month low at 17.3% in April amid monetary tightening

Pakistan inflation eases to 22-month low at 17.3% in April amid monetary tightening
A vendor sells bananas on a cart along a street in Lahore on March 31, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 02 May 2024
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Pakistan inflation eases to 22-month low at 17.3% in April amid monetary tightening

Pakistan inflation eases to 22-month low at 17.3% in April amid monetary tightening
  • Pakistan beset by inflation above 20% since May 2022, registering high of 38% in May 2023 due to high food, energy costs
  • Pakistan is currently navigating strict reforms as part of an International Monetary Fund bailout program
Updated 02 May 2024
KHURSHID AHMED   
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KARACHI: Pakistan’s inflation eased off to 17.3%, the lowest since May 2022, on a year-on-year basis in April 2024 from 20.7% recorded in March 2024 and 36.4% in April 2023, official data issued on Thursday said.

Pakistan has been beset by inflation above 20% since May 2022, registering a high of 38 percent in May 2023 mainly due to high food and energy costs. 

Pakistan’s central bank, which has kept the interest rate steady at 22% since June last year amid tight monetary tightening, had forecasted that ” inflation will continue to remain on downward trajectory further moderation.”

“Besides the coordinated tight monetary and fiscal policy response, other factors that have led to this favorable outcome include lower global commodity prices, improved food supplies and high base effect,” the central bank said in its monetary policy statement issued on Monday.

On a month-on-month basis, inflation decreased to 0.4% in April 2024 as compared to an increase of 1.7% in the previous month and a hike of 2.4% in April 2023, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). 

In April on an annual basis the prices of onions increased by 156.16%, tomatoes 126.67%, chicken 33.62% and meat 22.18%. In the non-food category, gas charges surged by 318.74%, electricity charges 71.12%, accommodation services 31.50%, transport services 26.70%, cotton cloth 23.00%, drugs and medicines 22.78%, and footwears 21.38%.

Urban core inflation measured by non-food non-energy items increased to 13.1% on an annual basis in April 2024 as compared to an increase of 12.8% in the previous month and 19.5% in April 2023.

Rural core inflation measured by non-food non-energy items increased to 19.3% on a year-on-year basis in April 2024 as compared to an increase of 20% in the previous month and 24.9% in April 2023.

Topics: Pakistan economy inflation in Pakistan

Pakistan’s foreign office activates crisis management unit for citizens stranded in Syria

Pakistan’s foreign office activates crisis management unit for citizens stranded in Syria
Updated 6 sec ago
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Pakistan’s foreign office activates crisis management unit for citizens stranded in Syria

Pakistan’s foreign office activates crisis management unit for citizens stranded in Syria
  • Syrian opposition forces say President Bashar Assad has fled country after losing control of Homs 
  • Pakistan says embassy in Damascus continues to actively assist Pakistani nationals stranded in Syria
Updated 6 sec ago
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office activated its Crisis Management Unit (CMU) to help out stranded citizens in Syria, state-run media reported this week, amid increasing turmoil in Syria as the civil war there intensifies. 

Syrian opposition forces have staged a dramatic comeback against President Bashar Assad after the fierce fighting that broke out last week reached its decisive stages. 

Syrian opposition forces announced on Saturday they had gained full control of the key city of Homs after only a day of fighting, leaving Assad’s 24-year rule dangling by a thread. They also said that Assad had fled the country as the opposition forces advanced.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has activated its Crisis Management Unit (CMU) to facilitate Pakistanis in Syria,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Saturday. 

It said the decision was taken in response to the ongoing developments and the evolving situation in Syria. The state broadcaster urged Pakistani citizens in Syria to reach out for help at 051-9207887 and also email at [email protected].

“Meanwhile, the Embassy of Pakistan in Damascus continues to actively assist Pakistani nationals in Syria,” Radio Pakistan said. 

Pakistan earlier this week expressed alarm at the increasing turmoil in Syria and called for de-escalation in violence in the country. 

The fall of Homs and threat to the capital pose an immediate existential danger to the Assad dynasty’s five-decade reign over Syria and the continued influence there of its main regional backer, Iran.

The pace of events has stunned Arab capitals and raised fears of a new wave of regional instability.
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Turkiye and Russia issued a joint statement saying the crisis was a dangerous development and calling for a political solution.

Syria’s civil war, which erupted in 2011 as an uprising against Assad’s rule, dragged in big outside powers, created space for militants to plot attacks around the world and sent millions of refugees into neighboring states.

Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, the strongest rebel group, is the former Al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria regarded by the US and others as a terrorist organization, and many Syrians remain fearful it will impose draconian Islamist rule.

US President-elect Donald Trump has said the US should not be involved in the conflict and should “let it play out.”

Topics: Syria Crisis Management Unit President Bashar Assad

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Pakistan will ‘soon’ set up commission for minority rights, says law minister

Pakistan will ‘soon’ set up commission for minority rights, says law minister
Updated 18 min 34 sec ago
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Pakistan will ‘soon’ set up commission for minority rights, says law minister

Pakistan will ‘soon’ set up commission for minority rights, says law minister
  • Non-Muslims, who make up around 3% of Pakistan’s population, often complain of discrimination
  • Azam Nazeer Tarar says the commission will help address minority grievances, promote inclusivity
Updated 18 min 34 sec ago
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Law, Justice and Human Rights, Azam Nazeer Tarar, has announced that Pakistan would “soon” establish the National Commission for the Rights of Minorities, Pakistani state media reported on Saturday.

Non-Muslims constitute about three percent of Pakistan’s estimated population of 240 million people. Pakistan’s minority communities complain of facing discrimination in nearly all walks of life and regularly come under attack by militant groups. They have also sometimes been accused of blasphemy, which is punishable by death in the South Asian nation.

Speaking at a Christmas celebration event in Islamabad, Tarar said the draft for the establishment of the commission had been formulated in consultation with minority representatives from Pakistan’s parliament and civil society, and approved by a cabinet committee, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

“The government wants to make the commission more independent which will serve [as] an effective platform for addressing grievances and promoting inclusivity,” the law minister was quoted as saying.

“We have ensured a balanced representation of all minorities and non-minorities in Pakistan.”

Tarar noted that the Constitution of Pakistan clearly stated that Pakistan “belongs to all of us while our identity and pride lie in being Pakistanis,” according to Radio Pakistan.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s Adviser on Political Affairs and Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination, Rana Sanaullah, chaired a meeting in Islamabad to review the National Commission for Minorities Bill 2024.

“The commission will consist of 13 members, 9 of whom will be from minority communities,” the Pakistani ministry of religious affairs said in a statement.

A new interfaith harmony policy for promoting religious tolerance was also reviewed at the meeting, the ministry added.

Topics: Pakistan National Commission for the Rights of Minorities Azam Nazeer Tarar

Court issues warrants for several members of ex-PM Khan’s party in Pakistan Army headquarters attack case

Court issues warrants for several members of ex-PM Khan’s party in Pakistan Army headquarters attack case
Updated 07 December 2024
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Court issues warrants for several members of ex-PM Khan’s party in Pakistan Army headquarters attack case

Court issues warrants for several members of ex-PM Khan’s party in Pakistan Army headquarters attack case
  • Khan supporters attacked the army headquarters in Rawalpindi, other military installations on May 9, 2023, following his brief arrest in a land graft case
  • His PTI party says a commission should be formed under the senior-most judges of the Supreme Court to independently investigate the events of May 9, 2023
Updated 07 December 2024
KASHIF IMRAN

ISLAMABAD: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Pakistan’s Rawalpindi on Saturday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and other members of former prime minister Imran Khan’s party in a case pertaining to an attack on Pakistan Army’s General Head­quarters (GHQ) during violent protests on May 9, 2023.
Supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party attacked and damaged government and military installations on May 9, 2023, after his brief arrest that day. The attacks took place a little over a year after Khan fell out with Pakistan’s powerful military, blaming the institution for colluding with his rivals to oust him from office in a parliamentary vote in April 2022. The military rejects his allegations. 
Several cases against Khan and his party related to the May 9, 2023 violence were registered by the government, which also cracked down on his supporters allegedly involved in the riots. Khan’s party has chosen to distance itself from the protests and accused the country’s intelligence agencies of framing it for the violence. The military denies the accusation.
During a hearing on Saturday, Rawalpindi ATC Judge Amjad Ali Shah ordered the city police chief to produce all 25 suspects, including PTI members Gandapur, Shibli Faraz, Shehryar Afridi, Zain Qureshi, Tahir Sadiq and Taimoor Masood, before the court on December 10.
“A commission should be formed under the senior-most judges of the Supreme Court to independently investigate the events of May 9 (2023),” the PTI reiterated on X. “Unjustly imprisoned political detainees should be released!“
CM Gandapur, who heads the government of Khan’s party in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has led multiple protests in recent months to demand Khan’s release from prison and to challenge results of the Feb. 8 national election.
On Thursday, Khan, along with several others, was indicted on charges of inciting his supporters to attack the GHQ in Rawalpindi last year, his party said.
“Indictment was announced within Adiala prison premises,” the PTI said, referring to the jail in Rawalpindi where Khan has been incarcerated since last year.
Nearly 2,000 people were arrested following the May 9 protests and at least eight were killed. The government had called in the army to help restore order.
Khan, who remains a popular figure in Pakistan despite several court cases against him, has led a campaign of unprecedented defiance against the country’s powerful military.
He has also accused the military of rigging the February 8 election in collusion with the election commission and his political rivals to keep him from returning to power. The military, election commission and Khan’s rivals deny the allegation.

Topics: May 9 protests PTI protest Imran Khan GHQ

Pakistan weekly inflation slows to 3.57 percent year on year

Pakistan weekly inflation slows to 3.57 percent year on year
Updated 07 December 2024
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Pakistan weekly inflation slows to 3.57 percent year on year

Pakistan weekly inflation slows to 3.57 percent year on year
  • Pakistan also slashed interest rates by 250 basis points in Nov. to help revive a sluggish economy amid drop in inflation
  • PM Shehbaz Sharif congratulates nation as inflation hits lowest level since Oct. 2018, promises to resolve public issues
Updated 07 December 2024
KASHIF IMRAN

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), has slowed to 3.57 percent on a year-on-year basis in the week ending on Dec. 5, the country’s statistics bureau said, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulating the nation over the drop.
The SPI, which comprises 51 essential items collected from 50 markets in 17 cities, is computed on a weekly basis to assess the price movement of essential commodities at shorter interval of time so as to review the price situation in the country.
Inflation for the week ending on Dec. 05 decreased by 0.34 percent as compared to the previou week, with a major decrease observed in prices of tomatoes, chicken, pulses wheat flour, rice and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
In a statement issued from his office, Sharif noted that inflation had fallen to its lowest level since October 2018, saying that his government was working tirelessly to resolve public issues.
“Further steps are being taken for employment generation, industrial development and promotion of foreign investment in the country,” he said on Saturday.
The prime minister said an increase in remittances and investment from friendly countries as well as stable diplomatic relations were a reflection of Pakistan’s development journey.
“All stakeholders are playing their role in the national development journey,” he added.
Pakistan’s annual consumer inflation slowed to 4.9 percent in November largely due to a high base a year earlier, the statistics bureau said this week, lower than the government’s forecast.
The finance ministry had projected inflation would slow to 5.8 percent-6.8 percent in November and ease to 5.6 percent-6.5 percent in December, it said in its monthly economic report published last week. Consumer inflation cooled from 7.2 percent in October, a sharp drop from a multi-decade high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023.
The South Asian country, which has been facing an economic slowdown, also slashed interest rates by 250 basis points earlier in November to help revive a sluggish economy amid a drop in the rate of inflation.
On Friday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) crossed 109,000 points as the bullish sentiment prevailed at the market, analysts said. The benchmark KSE-100 index surged by 814 points, or 0.75 percent, to hit a record high of 109,053 points as compared to the previous day’s close of 108,238 points.

Topics: Pakistan economy inflation in Pakistan Pakistan inflation

Pakistan forms five-member panel to draft rules for appointment of judges

Pakistan forms five-member panel to draft rules for appointment of judges
Updated 07 December 2024
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Pakistan forms five-member panel to draft rules for appointment of judges

Pakistan forms five-member panel to draft rules for appointment of judges
  • The committee will comprise Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Attorney-General Mansoor Usman Awan, Senators Ali Zafar and Farooq H. Naek, and Akhtar Hussain
  • The Judicial Commission of Pakistan says it accords highest priority to procedure and criteria for assessment, evaluation and fitness for appointment of judges
Updated 07 December 2024
KASHIF IMRAN

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi has constituted a five-member committee for drafting rules to regulate procedure and criteria for the appointment of judges, the Supreme Court of Pakistan said on Friday.
The development came after Chief Justice Afridi presided over meetings of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan to consider constitution of the committee to draft rules for judges’ appointment, nomination of Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan as eighth judge of the constitutional bench of the Supreme Court, and the appointment of additional judges in Sindh and Peshawar high courts.
The committee to draft rules will be led by Supreme Court judge, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and comprise Attorney-General of Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, Senators Ali Zafar and Farooq H. Naek, and lawyer Akhtar Hussain, according to a Supreme Court statement. The panel will draft rules and share them with the Judicial Commission of Pakistan secretariat by December 15.
“The Judicial Commission of Pakistan unanimously decided to accord highest priority toward framing of rules relating to regulating its procedure including the procedure and criteria for assessment, evaluation and fitness for appointment of Judges,” the Supreme Court of Pakistan said in a statement.
The commission also approved the nomination of Justice Hassan, a judge of the Supreme Court, for the constitutional bench of the apex court.
In its maiden session on Nov. 5, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan, reconstituted under the 26th constitutional amendment, appointed Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan as head of the seven-judge constitutional bench to take up constitutional cases. The bench includes Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha Malik, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Musarrat Hilali and Naeem Akhtar Afghan, and high-profile cases with political implications will now be brought before it to adjudicate such matters.
The Judicial Commission of Pakistan nominated Justices Adnan-ul-Karim Memon and Agha Faisal as judges of constitutional benches of the Sindh High Court by a majority vote, according to the Supreme Court statement. The agenda for appointment of additional judges to the Sindh and Peshawar high courts was deferred till December 21.

Topics: pakistan supreme court Supreme Court of Pakistan PAKISTAN CHIEF JUSTICE chief justice Yahya Afridi

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