Inflation

Food inflation too slid to 3.84 per cent in April from 4.79 per cent in March. According to the data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, retail inflation was at a high of 7.79 per cent in April 2022, while food inflation was 8.31 per cent during the period.

Inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), clocked in at 36.4 per cent year-on-year in April. It was recorded at 35.4 per cent last month and 13.4 per cent in April 2022, Geo News reported. This is the highest inflation ever, according to data available since 1965, Arif Habib Limited said.

The International Energy Agency's predicted daily average for 2023 is 2m bpd higher than last year's figure. The price of a barrel of oil rose from $85.62 to $86.10 on Friday morning after the IEA's report was published, The Guardian reported. The agency warned that a recent decision by the world's biggest oil exporters to cut their ;production could drive oil prices higher, in a blow to efforts to reduce inflation and reset economic growth in developed countries, The Guardian reported.

March's monthly consumer price index (CPI), which measures the price of a basket of goods and services, showed the rate easing off over the last year, The Guardian reported. In February, the annual inflation figures stood at 6 per cent, already a steep decline from its peak of 9.1 per cent in June, the report said.

The retail inflation fell mainly due to sharp slide in food inflation, which stood at 4.79 per cent in March against 5.95 per cent in February. Retail inflation was 6.95 per cent in March 2022. With CPI-based inflation falling below 6 per cent, it is now within the RBI's tolerance level, which is between 2 per cent to 6 per cent.

In a latest forecast, the IMF has reduced the economic growth estimates of Pakistan to 0.5 per cent, while the inflation spike projection estimates are far above 20 per cent for at least two years. The staggering estimates showcase Pakistan's deep rooted financial crisis, which are showing their damaging affects on the people, who are facing severe hardships, which for the moment, are not going to end soon.

Fixed deposit is another asset class which gives just the coupon rate and at times when the economy does well, fails to return the rising cost of inflation. Real estate comes with its mystique and is an asset class which has high returns but is cyclical, and entry and exit from this investment is a tedious process and above all requires very large investments.

He notes the improvement in our external situation (current account deficit compressing and forex reserves built back to higher than USD 600 billion), the prospects of inflation falling ahead (RBI forecast for FY 24 10 bps lower at 5.2 per cent), and drag from the external sector on growth (though GDP forecast for FY 24 is a shade higher.

Real Estate consultant Anarock termed the unchanged Repo Rates as a boon for the Housing sector. Anuj Puri, Chairman, Anarock Group said that much against general expectations, the RBI decided to keep the repo rates unchanged at 6.5 per cent. "This is indeed good for the residential real estate market, which faces a tough road ahead amid massive layoffs by large corporates the world over

Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data showed the inflation rate in March 2022 was lower at 4 per cent, reports Xinhua news agency. The average inflation rate for the first quarter of this year stood at 8.3 per cent. In a news conference, PSA head Dennis Mapa said the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages, which recorded a lower inflation rate at 9.3 per cent from 10.8 per cent in February.