Kathmandu. Inflation in Pakistan’s prices of goods and services increased significantly in April. On an annual basis, inflation stood at 10.9 per cent, up from 7.3 per cent in March last year. This indicates that prices are rising at a rapid pace in the country.

According to official data, there has been a significant increase in prices on a monthly basis. Inflation rose to 2.5 per cent in April, compared to 1.2 per cent in March. This shows that the rate of inflation has accelerated in the short term.

Inflation has increased in both urban and rural areas. Inflation in urban areas stood at 11.1 per cent year-on-year, up from 7.4 per cent in March. This means that people living in cities have to pay higher prices for goods and services of daily use.

Similarly, inflation in rural areas also reached 10.6 per cent, significantly higher than 7.2 per cent in the previous month. This shows that the cost of living is increasing in rural areas as well.

On a month-on-month basis, price rise in urban areas rose to 2.7 per cent, up from 1.3 per cent in March. Inflation in rural areas also rose to 2.1 per cent, down from 1 per cent in the previous month. This shows that prices have risen sharply in a short period of time in both areas.

The average inflation in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year stood at 6.19 percent. This is higher than the 4.73 percent in the same period last year, which clearly shows that the overall inflation rate has increased this year. Thus, the current data indicates that the cost of goods and services of daily consumption in Pakistan is increasing and the cost of living of citizens is increasing.