Ghana Inflation Climbs to 9.7%, Near Upper Limit of Target Band
Ghana Inflation Climbs to 9.7%, Near Upper Limit of Target Band
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Ghana’s inflation rate rose for a third consecutive month in August after a surge in demand for dollars caused the currency to slide, pushing up import prices.
Consumer inflation quickened to 9.7% from 9% in July, Government Statistician Samuel Kobina Annim told reporters Wednesday in Accra, the capital. Prices climbed 0.3% in the month.
The currency of the world’s second-biggest cocoa producer has weakened every month since May. Businesses are covering from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and buying dollars for goods they need to import to expand. That contributed to a 1.9% decline of the cedi against the dollar, a record low that drove up the price of items including fuel and clothes.
Non-food prices rose 8.7% after climbing 8.6% in the previous month. Food inflation accelerated to 10.9%, compared with 9.5% in July.
Despite the uptick, inflation remains within the central bank’s 6% to 10% target range. That will give the monetary policy committee room to hold the key interest rate at a more than nine-year low to support the economy’s recovery when it meets later this month. The MPC in July said it expects inflation to remain within target for the next 18-24 months.
The central bank will announce its next interest-rate decision on Sept. 27.
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