Rwanda's Consumer Prices Increase by 5% in August on Transport Costs

AFRICAN BUSINESS AND ECONOMYSeptember 16, 2024 at 11:58 AM UTC

TLDR

Consumer prices in Rwanda rose by 5% year-on-year in August 2024, with a 0.9% monthly increase.
Transport costs had the largest annual rise at 19%, contributing significantly to the overall inflation rate.
The central bank cut its key interest rate by 50 basis points to 6.5% in August.

Consumer prices in Rwanda rose by 5% year-on-year in August 2024, with a monthly increase of 0.9%, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report by the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR).

The CPI tracks the average price changes of goods and services purchased by households, with urban CPI being the primary measure of inflation. Transport costs saw the largest annual rise, increasing by 19%, contributing 2.2 percentage points to the overall inflation rate.

Housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose by 4.8%, contributing 0.8 percentage points, while food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 1.6%, contributing 0.6 percentage points. In August, the central bank cut its key interest rate by 50 basis points to 6.5%.

Key Takeaways

Rwanda's economy showed resilience with an 8.2% growth rate in 2023 and sustained expansion in the first quarter of 2024, driven by robust performances across agriculture, services, and industry sectors. The government anticipates steady growth rates of 6.6% in 2024, 6.5% in 2025, 6.8% in 2026, and 7.2% in 2027. In May, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the third review under the Policy Coordination Instrument and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangements, along with the first review under the Standby Credit Facility (SCF). Following this review, Rwanda accessed around $76.2 million under the RSF and $88.4 million under the SCF, bolstering the nation's financial stability and economic resilience.

Rwanda

Inflation

Consumer Prices

Interest Rates

IMF