Inflation: High Transport Fares And Rising Food Prices Push Ghana’s May 2022 Figures Further Up

• The inflation figure for May 2022 has been given as 27.6%, showing a constant trend of rising prices of goods and services in Ghana
• The new figure released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) on June 8, 2022, is 4% higher than April 2022's figure of 23.6%
• Rising inflation means Ghanaians are having to spend more cash to be able to buy the same quantity of goods they used to buy at the market
• Without a commensurate salary increase, the average Ghanaian worker is bound to face hardship as general prices soar

Inflation figures for May 2022 have revealed that transport fare increases and rising food prices have pushed the rate of inflation for May 2022 to 27.6%.

According to the Ghana Statistical Service, the rate of inflation for Transport (39.0%), Household Equipment & Maintenance (33.8%), Housing, Water, Gas & Electricity (32.3%), and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (30.1.6%) were higher than the national average (27.6%).

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In April 2022, the inflation rate was 23.6%. This means in just 30 days, prices of goods have gone up on the market by 4%.

Inflation measures the increase in the prices of the goods and services that households buy. It is measured as the rate of change in those prices.

Ghana’s inflation figures under Nana Akufo-Addo’s government in recent months show a steady rise in the prices of goods and services. This means Ghanaians would typically need more cash to be able to purchase the same quantity of goods.

Because a lower inflation figures are seen as a sign of good economic management, Ghana’s increasing inflation figures suggest the country’s economy has been getting worse.

The latest Ghana Statistical Service data also show that food prices have gong up by 30.1%, compared with 26.6% in April 2022. Non-food Inflation was 25.7% in May 2022, as against 21.3% the previous month.

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Also, inflation for imported goods for May was given as 28.2%, which is higher than the 24.7% recorded for April 2022, while the inflation for locally produced items was 27.3%, up from the 23.0% recorded in April 2022.

Ghana Records 19.4% Inflation: Transport Fares, Food Prices Push Figure To 13-Year High

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported previously that Ghana's March 2022 inflation figure rose to a staggering 19.4%, driven significantly by high transport fares, and fuel and food prices, the country's highest in 13 years.

In February, Ghana's annual inflation rate accelerated for the ninth consecutive month to 15.7% from 13.9% in January 2022.

According to data released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, for March this year, foodstuffs like oil and fats recorded a 28.2% inflation, while water recorded a 27.1% inflation.

Source: YEN.com.gh