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Amidst the ongoing battle with inflation in Pakistan, chicken prices have seen a significant surge in Punjab, according to a report by ARY News.
Poultry dealers have reported an increase of PKR 37 per kilogram in chicken prices. The new rate now stands at PKR 421 per kilogram, with dealers attributing the hike to increased taxes. Previously in May, chicken prices had dropped by PKR 39 per kilogram in Lahore's retail market, reducing the cost to PKR 416 per kilogram. The poultry association noted a substantial decrease of PKR 259 per kilogram over a span of three weeks. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has pledged to take action against those exploiting consumers through inflated chicken prices. She has initiated stringent measures against poultry farmers and traders, including the requisition of stock data to investigate the sudden price hike, ARY News reported. Following the introduction of the fiscal year 2024-25 budget, Pakistan has witnessed a notable rise in inflation, with the weekly inflation rate climbing by 1.28 per cent. According to the latest Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) weekly report, the annual inflation rate has surged to 23.59 per cent. The report highlights increases in prices for 29 essential items over the past week, while five items maintained stable prices and 17 experienced price reductions. Notably, tomato prices soared by 70.77 per cent, surpassing PKR 200 per kilogram. Flour prices rose by 10.57 per cent, powdered milk by 8.90 per cent, diesel by 3.58 per cent, petrol by 2.88 per cent, and LPG by 1.63 per cent, according to the PBS. Earlier reports from July 1 indicated that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation stood at 12.6 per cent year-on-year in June 2024, compared to 29.4 per cent in June the previous year. On a month-on-month basis, CPI inflation rose by 0.5 per cent in June 2024, contrasting with a 3.2 per cent decrease the previous month and a 0.3 per cent decrease in June 2023. In a deep economic crisis, Pakistan's parliament recently passed a tax-heavy finance bill for the upcoming fiscal year amid ongoing negotiations for a new International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout. (ANI)
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