ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s annual consumer price inflation slowed to 23.8% in November from 26.6% a month earlier, the statistics bureau said on Thursday, days after the central bank unexpectedly hiked policy rates.

Prices were up 0.8% in November from the previous month, the bureau said in a statement.

Pakistan’s finance ministry said in its monthly outlook released earlier this week that inflation would decline marginally in November, while staying in a range of 23%-25%.

On Nov. 25, the central bank hiked its policy rate by 100 basis points to 16%, the highest in several years, as it sought to prevent inflation from becoming entrenched.

The South Asian nation, which is reeling from devastating floods that are estimated to have caused over $30 billion of damage, has been facing a balance of payment crisis.