Pakistan Flour Prices Surge Amid Grain Import Delay

Household budgets across Pakistan face renewed pressure as retail prices for wheat and flour continue an upward trajectory. Despite federal plans to procure one million tonnes of grain from international markets to stabilize domestic supply, grain prices across major urban centers have registered steady increases.

Official Sensitive Price Index data for the week ending August 6 highlights noticeable price jumps in Karachi. The cost of a 20-kilogram flour bag climbed to between Rs 2,700 and Rs 3,000, up from Rs 2,600 to Rs 2,900 reported in the previous week. Similarly, 10-kilogram wheat bags in the port city reached Rs 1,200 from Rs 1,160, while fine flour rose to Rs 158.56 per kilogram from Rs 149.46.

Nationwide indicators reflected a widespread price surge, with wheat flour costs rising by 0.52 percent week-on-week. Across the country, the average price for a 20-kilogram flour bag ranged from Rs 2,200 to Rs 3,133, while the national average for a 10-kilogram wheat bag edged up to Rs 1,235 from Rs 1,223. SPI data further showed that consumers in Islamabad and Rawalpindi paid the highest prices nationwide for 10-kilogram wheat bags, reaching Rs 1,339.31.

Market participants cited by Dawn Business expressed concern regarding the lack of immediate price intervention ahead of foreign grain arrivals. Local traders noted that unless administrative measures are taken to regulate open-market rates prior to the receipt of imported wheat, consumers will not derive substantial benefits from the procurement strategy.