Producer Inflation drops to 3.1 percent in January 2017

The Producer Price Inflation for January 2017 recorded 3.1 percent.

This rate is 1.7 percent lower than the rate recorded in December 2016 which was 4.9 percent.

The monthly change rate for January 2017 was 2.1 percent.

According to the Ghana Statistical Service, the Mining and Quarrying sub-sector recorded the highest year-on-year producer price inflation rate of 18.6 percent, followed by the Manufacturing sub-sector with 2.4 percent.

The Utilities sub-sector recorded the lowest year-on-year inflation rate of negative 6.8 percent.

Acting Government Statistician, Baah Wadieh explained to Citi Business News that the drop was influenced by declining inflation in the manufacturing and utility sub-sectors.

“The decline in the Producer Price Inflation rate was mainly due to the decline in the inflation rate for the manufacturing and utilities sub-sectors,” he said.

With respect to the monthly changes, the Mining and Quarrying recorded the highest rate of 4.9 followed by manufacturing sub-sector with 2.0 percent.

The Utilities sub-sector recorded the lowest rate of 0.2 percent.

Changes in sector inflation

For the mining and quarrying subsector, the producer inflation rate increased by 3.0 percentage points in January 2017 relative to the rate recorded in December 2016 (15.6%).

In manufacturing, the rate for January 2017 was 3.0 percentage points lower than that of December 2016 (5.4%).

Meanwhile under utilities, the rate for January 2017 was 0.2 percentage point higher compared with that of December 2016 (-7.0%).

By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana