The Consumer Price Index (CPI) which measures inflation – the rate of change in the increase in prices – dropped to 17.75 per cent (year-on-year) in June compared to17.93 per cent in the preceding month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) stated yesterday.

The NBS pointed out that the 0.18 per cent difference indicated that prices continued to rise in June but at a slightly slower increase than it did in May.

It is however, the third consecutive months of decline in the headline index.

The NBS stated that the moderation in prices were recorded in all the parameters that determine the headline index.

According to the CPI report for June which was released by the statistical agency, food inflation slowed to 21.83 per cent in June compared to 22.28 per cent in May, implying that food prices continued to rise in the review period but at a slightly slower speed compared to the previous month.

It pointed out that the rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam and other tubers, milk, cheese and eggs, fish, soft drinks, vegetables, oils and fats and meat.

Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce also slowed to 13.09 per cent in June, down by 0.06 per cent compared with 13.15 per cent in May.

The core index recorded the highest increases of garments, passenger travel by air and by road, motor cars and vehicle spare parts, shoes and other footwear, pharmaceutical products, medical services, hairdressing salons and personal grooming establishments .

Others are cleaning, repair and hire of clothing, clothing materials, other articles of clothing and clothing accessories, furniture and furnishing and fuels and lubricants for personal transport equipment.

On month-on-month basis, the food sub-index increased by 1.11 per cent in June 2021, up by 0.06 per cent points from 1.05 per cent recorded in May.

The average annual rate of change of the food sub-index for the 12-month period ending June over the previous twelve-month average was 19.72 per cent, 0.54 percentage points from the average annual rate of change recorded in May which was 19.18 per cent.

According to the NBS, the urban inflation rate increased by 18.35 per cent (year-on-year) in June from 18.51 per cent recorded in May, while the rural inflation rate increased by 17.16 per cent in June from 17.36 per cent in May 2021.

On a month-on-month basis, the urban index rose by 1.09 per cent in the review period, up by 0.05 points compared to the rate recorded in May while the rural index also rose by 1.02 per cent in June, up by 0.04 percentage points over the 0.98 per cent recorded in May.
Source: This Day