Ghana consumer inflation slows to two-year low of 22.8% in June

AFRICAN BUSINESS AND ECONOMYJuly 15, 2024 at 1:47 PM UTC

TLDR

Ghana's consumer inflation rate dropped to 22.8% year-on-year in June, the lowest since April 2022.
Non-food inflation declined to 21.6%, offsetting the rise in food inflation.
Month-to-month, Ghana's inflation rate in June 2024 decreased to 2.9% from May's 3.2%.

Ghana's consumer inflation slowed for a third consecutive month to 22.8% year-on-year in June from 23.1% in May, the lowest level since April 2022, the statistics service said.

Government statistician Samuel Kobina Annim told a news conference that the June inflation was largely driven by a decline in non-food inflation which dropped to 21.6%, enough to mute an increase in food inflation.

On a month-to-month basis, Ghana’s inflation rate in June 2024 was 2.9%, down from May’s 3.2%. Meanwhile, food inflation in June was 24%, appreciating from 22.6% in May 2024.

Key Takeaways

The cocoa-, gold- and oil-producing West African country is battling to emerge from an economic crisis. It cleared a key hurdle to restructure its international bonds last week, as its official creditors confirmed the proposed debt rework was not overly favorable to bondholders. As the country’s inflation rate declined through Q4 2023, the Bank of Ghana (BoG) decided to loosen its monetary policy, as it cut its policy rate from 30.00% to 29.00% in January 2024. After making the move, the country’s inflation declined slightly in February 2024 to 23.2%. However, in March, the country’s inflation rate appreciated to 25.8% causing the Bank of Ghana to pause its monetary policy loosening. However, with the country’s inflation decelerating since March, it is projected that there will be further rate cuts when the BoG’s monetary policy committee meets again on July 29.

Ghana

Inflation

Interest Rates

Bank of Ghana

West Africa

Economy