Pakistan’s headline inflation increased to 7% on a year-on-year basis in February 2026, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Monday.
The reading was in line with the Ministry of Finance’s projection of 6–7% for the month. Inflation had stood at 5.8% in January 2026 and 1.5% in February 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.3% in February, compared with a 0.4% increase in January and a 0.8% decline in February last year.
For the first eight months of FY26, average inflation was recorded at 5.46%, compared with 5.85% in the same period of FY25.
Urban inflation rose by 6.8% year-on-year in February, up from 5.8% in January and 1.8% in February 2025. On a monthly basis, urban CPI increased by 0.3%, compared with a 0.2% rise in the previous month and a 0.7% decline a year earlier.
Rural inflation stood at 7.3% year-on-year, compared with 5.8% in January and 1.1% in February last year. On a month-on-month basis, rural CPI rose by 0.3%, against a 0.6% increase in January and a 1.1% decline in February 2025.
In its February 2026 Monthly Economic Update and Outlook, the Finance Division had projected inflation within the 6–7% range.
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