Inflation Rate Rises For Fourth Consecutive Month Despite Ofori-Atta Saying Economy Has Turned The Corner

• Ghana's inflation rate has risen for the fourth consecutive month from 42.5% in June 2023 to 43.1% in July 2023
• The government statistician Samuel Annim has noted that Ghana is seeing some reversals in gains made earlier in the year
• YEN.com.gh spoke to an economist who said there was a chance inflation improved towards the end of 2023

Ghana’s inflation rate has again risen, despite the government saying the economy is taking a turn for the better.

Annual inflation for July rose to 43.1% from 42.5% in June, despite some expectations that the rate would reduce.

The recent increase announced by government statistician Samuel Annim is the fourth consecutive month inflation rose in 2023.

A Bloomberg survey noted that the rate was expected to be around 42%.

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Month-on-month inflation also increased to 3.6% in July from 3.2% in June.

”So we are beginning to see a reversal in the slowdown in the month-on-month inflation that we saw in June 2023," the government statistician noted.

Giving further figures, food inflation rose to 55% and non-food inflation rose to 33.8% in July 2023.

During the mid-year budget review, the government revised inflation targets from 18.9% to 31.3%.

An applied economist, Alfred Appiah, told YEN.com.gh that he expected inflation to hover around the 40% mark largely because core inflation remains high.

He however noted that the comparison of the consumer price index between the later part of 2022 and 2023 could prove favourable to government projections.

"The CPI rose significantly in November and December last year as a result of increases in fuel, utilities and food prices. So it’s possible that inflation in those two months this year could be relatively lower since we’ll be comparing to a significantly higher base," he explained.

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"Ghana's economy still in ICU": Joe Jackson rejects Ofori-Atta's assessment in 2023-midyear budget review

Economist Joe Jackson dismisses Ofori-Atta's claim

YEN.com.gh reported that economist Joe Jackson pushed back against finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta's claim that Ghana's economy has turned the corner.

The Director of Operations at Dalex Finance said if Ghana's economy were a patient, it would be in the Intensive Care Unit of a health facility.

Joe Jackson's rejection of the minister's claim follows similar critical reactions to the assessment on July 31 contained in the 2023 mid-year budget review.

Bank of Ghana makes GH¢55.12bn loss

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported in a separate story that the Bank of Ghana lost GH¢55.12 billion due to haircuts that its investments suffered under the controversial Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).

BoG's holdings of marketable and non-marketable instruments were exchanged for lower-yielding instruments under the DDEP, the BoG said in its 2022 annual financial statement.

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"We won't lend money to government again": Bank of Ghana vows after losing GH¢60.8 billion

BoG governor Dr Ernest Addison said he was working to ensure equity was restored to a positive path by the end of 2027.

Source: YEN.com.gh