Inflation in Pakistan Eases from Three-decade High

Consumer prices in South Asia’s second-largest economy jumped 23.91 per cent from a year earlier after soaring 25.33 per cent in August, the Federal Bureau of Statistics said in Islamabad today.

“The ease came with some price controls during last month because of the holy month of Ramadan,” said Farhan Rizvi, an economist at JS Global Capital Ltd. in Karachi. “The trend seems temporary, as the devaluation of the rupee and the trade gap would take inflation back to the higher side” in October.

Inflation in Pakistan is being exacerbated by weakness in the nation’s currency, which is pushing up the cost of imports. Pakistan’s central bank pumped foreign currency into the market last week to prop up the rupee, which fell to a record low against the dollar. The government issued price lists to retailers during the holy month of Ramadan to prevent food costs from rising. Muslims fast from dawn to dusk during Ramadan which ended this month.