KARACHI: Pakistan’s consumer price inflation slowed to 5.6% year-on-year in December, while prices fell on a monthly basis, official data showed on Thursday.
The data comes after Pakistan’s central bank cut its key policy rate by 50 basis points to 10.5% last month, breaking a four-meeting hold, in a move that surprised markets. All analysts polled by Reuters had expected rates to remain unchanged at the December meeting.
Inflation eased from 6.1% in November and marked a sharp slowdown from levels that peaked above 30% in 2023, according to official data.
Lower prices of perishable food items helped drive the monthly decline, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said, with food prices falling 1.7% month-on-month in December, led by declines in both urban and rural areas.
The finance ministry had said on Wednesday that inflation was expected to remain moderate at 5.5%–6.5% in December.
