Inflation ends 2021 at 12.6%
Ghana recorded inflation rate of 12.6 percent at the end of the year – December 2021 – a 0.4 percentage points higher than the November 2021 rate of 12.2%.
The inflation rate is also higher than the Bank of Ghana’s inflation target of 8+/-2%, as well as most research institutions and analysts’ estimates for 2021.
According to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the surge in inflation was driven by increase in non-food inflation rate.
Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and other Fuels (20.7%) recorded the highest inflation in December 2021. It was followed by Transport with 11.7%.
Also, prices of goods and services went up by 1.2% between November and December 2021.
Food inflation stood at 12.8%, lower than November 2021 rate of 13.1%. However non-food inflation went up to 12.5% in December 2021, from 11.6% in November 2021.
The inflation for imported goods was 10.4%, higher than the 9.8% recorded in November 2021. However, inflation for locally produced items was 13.3%, up from 13% recorded in November 2021
Meanwhile, the Upper West region (18.6%) maintained its dominance as the region with the highest rate of inflation in December 2021, whilst the Eastern region (7.4%) recorded the lowest rate of Inflation.
The Greater Accra and Ashanti regions registered inflation rates of 12.9% and 16% respectively, higher than the national average.
Inflation ends November 2021 at 12.2%
Headline inflation for the month of November 2021, was 12.2 percent.
Read: Trade experts side with AGI on benchmark value policy
Compared to the previous month’s headline inflation rate – October 2021 – of 11 percent, the recorded 12.2 percent inflation rate for the month of November marks a 1.2 percentage points increment in inflation on a month-on-month basis.
Recorded inflation rate for the month of October, exceeded the central bank’s target band for a second straight month, making it the highest inflation recorded since May 2020.
Annual inflation accelerated to 11% in October from 10.6% in September.
The recorded increment in headline inflation came on the back of price pressures arising from sustained high fuel prices and transport costs, a weak local currency [cedi], and an uptick in food inflation.
Headline inflation to slowly inch up in 2022
Headline inflation rate is projected by the Center for Economics, Finance and Inequality Studies (CEFIS) to increase this year.
The projected increment in headline inflation is however, expected to happen at a slow rate.
CEFIS in a report noted, “The increasing rate of the monetary policy rates over the recent quarters does not predict a decrease in price levels. This coupled with the not too pleasant macroeconomic variables all points to the fact that inflation would largely continue to rally up in the 2022 albeit at a slow rate.”
“liquidity tightening on the international financial market, coupled with the uninspiring debt sustainability level for Ghana measured by the Debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio may mean that the government will have contract debt at a higher cost than before,” it added.
This it said, will inch up inflation which will affect the cedi negatively.
