ISLAMABAD: Inflation in Pakistan hits 5 years high figure, governmentstatistics have revealed.

Consumer price inflation rose in July at its fastest pace in over five andhalf years, driven by energy and food prices, government data showed onThursday, highlighting the challenge facing the central bank andreinforcing expectations of a further rise in interest rate in comingmonths.

Consumer price inflation (CPI) accelerated to five years and seven monthshigh of 10.3 percent in July from 8.9 percent in June. Pakistan Bureau ofStatistics (PBS) data showed that the CPI inflation was recorded at 5.8percent in July 2018. On month-on-month basis, it increased by 2.3 percentin July 2019 as compared to an increase of 0.4 percent in the previousmonth and an increase of 0.9 percent in July 2018.

Consumer inflation surpassed the level of 10.9 percent year-on-yearrecorded in November 2013 after Pakistan agreed to a $6.6 billion IMF loanin September 2013 to address depletion in foreign exchange reserves thatplunged to the level that could cover one and half months of import bills.