Ghana’s inflation rate dropped to 23.1% in February 2025, down 0.4% from January. This marks the second consecutive month of disinflation. Significant contributions to food inflation from vegetables and tubers were observed, while imported items showed lower inflation rates compared to local products.
In February 2025, Ghana’s inflation rate decreased by 0.4 percentage points to 23.1%, as reported by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS). This decline follows a January rate of 23.5%. The reduction reflects a continued trend of disinflation, marking the second consecutive month with a drop in both year-on-year and month-on-month rates, albeit marginally. Despite the slowdown, February’s rate remains the third highest recorded in the past ten months, matching the rate from May 2024.
Moreover, the month-on-month inflation rate has now declined for three consecutive months, with a significant decrease from the previous 2.6% inflation recorded in November 2024. Three divisions, namely Food and non-alcoholic beverages (28.1%), Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics (25.6%), and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (24.3%), experienced year-on-year inflation rates above the overall rate of 23.1%. Conversely, only the food and non-alcoholic beverages division recorded a month-on-month inflation rate (1.8%) that exceeded the overall rate of 1.3%.
Vegetables, tubers, and plantains were major contributors to both annual (4.3 percentage points of 28.1%) and monthly food inflation (0.2 percentage points of 1.3%). With an annual inflation rate of 45.5%, these food items continue to significantly influence overall food inflation. The GSS highlighted a 9.3 percentage point gap exists between food inflation (28.1%) and non-food inflation (18.8%). Additionally, February saw an increase in both year-on-year and month-on-month food inflation rates by 0.2 and 0.4 percentage points, respectively.
The report further notes that month-on-month food inflation (1.8%) surpassed non-food inflation (0.9%) by 0.7 percentage points, and there is a 6.6 percentage point difference between inflation rates for locally produced items (25.1%) and imported items (18.5%). Notably, year-on-year food inflation decreased for the first time in five months, while year-on-year non-food inflation slowed for the fifth consecutive month, although the reductions were marginal.
The inflation rate in Ghana for February 2025 shows a slight decrease to 23.1%, indicating ongoing disinflation trends. The report underscores the significant roles of specific food items in shaping inflation dynamics, while differences between food and non-food inflation are also highlighted. Overall, this development presents a nuanced perspective on the economic landscape in Ghana, particularly regarding inflationary pressures and market behavior.
Original Source: www.ghanabusinessnews.com
