Inflation Falls To 18.37 Per cent

Annual inflation eased to 18.37 per cent in September from 19.65 per cent in August, the Ghana Statistical Service said yesterday.

At a press conference to release the rate, Mr. Sylvester Gyamfi, Assistant Chief Statistician, attributed the decrease to lower food prices usually experienced during August to October.

The figure represents a decline of 1.28 percentage points from 19.65 per cent for August.

"The fall in the inflation rate follows the trend of the full cycle of the harvest season usually experienced from August to October," said Mr. Sylvester Gyamfi.

The non-food group registered an inflation of 22.38 per cent as against 12.78 per cent for the food group.

Trends from the past three years indicate that August, September and October are usually periods of declining inflation.

Mr. Gyamfi, however, could not predict the rate for November and December, saying the rate might go down during the last two months if food prices hold out.

Government is projecting an end of year inflation of 14.5 per cent but the Centre for Economic Policy Analysis is forecasting 20.5 per cent inflation at the close of the year.

Eastern Region registered the lowest inflation of 14.10 per cent while the Central Region recorded the highest of 27.61 per cent. The urban and rural inflation for September was 20.41 and 17.92 per cent respectively.

Source: GNA