Overall inflation increased to 4.5% in March
Overall inflation increased to 4.5% in March 2019 compared to the 4.4% recorded in February, the Namibian Statistics Agency announced.
When compared to last year, the inflation rate in March 2019 is higher than the 3.5% recorded in March 2018. This however, is not the highest inflation rate for 2019, as January 2019 saw inflation at 4.7%, which was a decrease compared to the 5.1% recorded in December 2018.
According to the Agency, the main contributors to the March 2019 surge were the food and non-alcoholic beverages; alcoholic beverages; transport and education that increased to 5.8%, 6.8%, 7% and 11.3%, respectively.
The food and non-alcoholic beverages category, which weighs 16.5% in the inflation baskets, increased by 5.8% in March 2019. This is mainly on the back of an increase in the bread and cereal subcategory (9.9% form -1.3% in the prior year) and the upsurge in the vegetable subcategory (12.6% from 2.4% in the prior year).
“We attribute the increase in these subcategories to the dry weather conditions in the beginning of 2019. Persistent drought in both South Africa and Namibia will continue to put pressure on this category,” Simonis Storm Securities stated.
