ISLAMABAD: Prices in Pakistan rose 10.3% in September 2026 compared with the same month last year, government data showed Thursday. That is down from 11.1% in August.
A year earlier, in September 2025, prices had risen 5.8%.
Compared with August, prices went up 1.3% in September. They had risen 1.2% the month before and 2.1% in September 2025.
In cities, prices rose 10.1% over the year, down from 10.4% in August. A year earlier, the increase was 5.7%. Compared with the previous month, city prices rose 1.3%.
In villages, prices rose 10.5% over the year, down from 12.2% in August. A year earlier, the increase was 5.9%. Compared with the previous month, village prices rose 1.2%.
For the first three months of the current fiscal year, prices rose 10.2% on average, compared with 4.3% in the same period last year.
A day earlier, the Finance Division said it expected inflation to stay high in the coming months, predicting it would be between 10% and 11% in September 2026. It said future price levels would depend mostly on world oil prices.
The report said the government’s budget deficit reached 596.6 billion rupees in July 2026 because of higher spending and interest payments. It warned that high global oil prices are the biggest risk, as they affect what people can buy, the cost of goods and the country’s import bill.
It also said the Prime Minister’s Fuel Relief Scheme helps lower-income families through digital payments without reducing the petroleum levy, which protects their buying power while keeping government finances under control.
