Pakistan's annual inflation accelerates to 4.1% in July

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) -Pakistan's consumer inflation accelerated to 4.1% year-on-year in July, up from 3.2% in June, driven by rising prices for food items, fuels and medicines, the statistics bureau said on Friday.

July's consumer price inflation month-on-month was 2.9%, the bureau said.

The higher inflation reading follows the State Bank of Pakistan's assessment of a deteriorating inflation outlook, leading it to leave the key interest rate unchanged at 11%.

The bank's monetary policy committee said on Wednesday that energy prices, particularly for gas, had risen more than expected, and it considered the real policy rate should be adequately positive to keep inflation in the 5%–7% target range.

Pakistan is pushing through a series of economic reforms under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund programme, including a contractionary government budget passed in June that slashes spending to curb the fiscal deficit.

(Reporting by Asif Shahzad;Editing by Helen Popper)

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