ISLAMABAD, June 1 (Reuters) - Pakistan’s annual inflation rate slightly eased to 10.87% year-on-year in May, its statistics bureau said on Tuesday. That compared with an annual consumer price index increase of 11.1% in the previous month. The data came days ahead of the country’s annual budget. Prices of essential commodities, including chicken, eggs, meat, vegetables, pulses, sugar and rice, have been on the rise, hitting hard a population already under pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic. (Reporting by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Jan Harvey) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.