Economist, Dr. Eric Osei-Assibey is predicting a marginal increase in the inflation figure for December, 2017.
According to him, the high demand for some goods and services in December could push inflation up.
The Ghana Statistical Service will be announcing the inflation figure for December, later this morning.
Figures from the service indicate that inflation has been on the decline since September 2016.
The figure has fallen from 17.2 percent in September 2016 to 12.8 percent in March 2017 and 11.7 percent as at November 2017.
Speaking to Citi Business News, Dr. Osei-Asibey justified his expectation of a marginal increase, pointing to the stability in prices of components like utilities and transportation.
“I don’t expect inflation to go up in December. Even if it should go up it should be very marginal, because of the month in question. The high demand for goods and services in December was high, that could push the inflation figure up,” he said.
The declining inflation trends come on the back of stable electricity supply, coupled with tight policy stance—which has also largely accounted for the sustained stability in the local currency.
As part of projections for the 2018 fiscal year, the government has projected an average inflation rate of 9.8 percent and end year inflation of 8.9 percent for 2018.
In line with the medium-term policy objectives of the government, monetary policy is expected to continue to provide an anchor for inflation expectations and steer inflation towards the medium term target band of 8 ±2 percent.
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By: Bobbie Osei/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
