Headline inflation peaks at 5.6% in April
The headline inflation rate jumped to the highest level since November 2018, following steep rises in fuel and food prices in April, the latest consumer price index released by the Namibia Statistics Agency indicates.
Inflation came in at 5.6% in April 2022, a huge increase from the 3.9% seen a year ago in April 2021. On a monthly basis, inflation went up slightly from 4.5% in March.
Transport price inflation continued to accelerate, reaching 18.9% in April, up from 13.8% in March, while the food price inflation hastened to 5.7% in April from 4.6% in the previous month, driven by upward pressures from oils & fats; milk, cheese & eggs; and sugar.
PSG Namibia’s Director, Brian van Rensburg believes inflation risks are skewed to the upside. He noted that transport price inflation will likely remain near double digits throughout most of the year, despite the introduction of a temporary three-month reduction in levies imposed on fuel products in May.
“Even after this month’s downward fuel price adjustments, domestic fuel prices are still N$2.3/litre higher since the start of the year. Additionally, the prices of wheat, maize, seed oils and fertilisers have also surged in the wake of the Russian invasion, which will continue to exert upward pressure on food price inflation,” van Rensburg said.
