Islamabad, Dec 16 (IANS): Pakistan’s weekly inflation rate remained at a six-month high of 43.16 per cent in the week ending December 14, as soaring food prices continued to squeeze consumers, a media report said.

The main drivers of the inflation were food items, especially sugar, pulses, eggs and rice, which saw sharp increases in their prices over the year, The News reported.

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) inched down by 0.06 per cent week-on-week, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

This was the highest level since the week ending June 1, when the SPI inflation was 43.17 per cent, The News reported.

It was also the fifth consecutive week that the SPI inflation stayed above 40 per cent. For the week ending November 16, SPI was at 41.9 per cent, November 23 (41.13 per cent), November 30 (41.06 per cent), December 7 (42.68 per cent), and now at 43.16 per cent.

The country is facing severe inflationary pressures.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) earlier this week kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at a record high of 22 percent, as it awaited signs of easing inflation pressures after a recent hike in gas prices, The News reported.

In response to high inflation, the SBP has increased interest rates by a total of 15 percentage points during the last two years.