The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) yesterday said inflation rose by 12.82 per cent in July 2020.
NBS, in its “Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report July 2020,” said the increase is 0.26 per cent points higher than the rate recorded in June (12.56 per cent).
It said in the period under review, increases were recorded in Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) divisions that yielded the headline index.
The report said monthly, the headline index increased by 1.25 percent in July.
This, said the NBS, is 0.04 per cent rate higher than the rate recorded in June 2020 (1.21) per cent.
The corresponding 12-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index was 12.66 per cent in July, it said.
The report said this is higher than 12.50 per cent reported in June, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in July 2020 is 11.49 per cent compared to 11.36 per cent recorded in June.
The Bureau said the urban inflation rate increased by 13.40 per cent (year-on-year) in July 2020 from 13.18 per cent recorded in June 2020, while the rural inflation rate increased by 12.28 per cent in July 2020 from 11.99 per cent in June 2020.
On a month-on-month basis, the report said, the urban index rose by 1.27 per cent in July 2020, up by 0.04 from 1.23 per cent recorded in June 2020, while the rural index also rose by 1.23 percent in July 2020, up by 0.04 from the rate recorded in June 2020 (1.19) per cent.
Tye report added: “On month-on-month basis, the Headline index increased by 1.25 per cent in July 2020. This is 0.04 per cent rate higher than the rate recorded in June 2020 (1.21) per cent.
“Increases were recorded in all COICOP divisions that yielded the Headline index. The consumer price index, (CPI) which measures inflation increased by 12.82 percent (year-on-year) in July 2020. This is 0.26 percent points higher than the rate recorded in June 2020 (12.56) percent.
“The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the 12 months period ending July 2020 over the average of the CPI for the previous twelve months period was 12.05 per cent, representing a 0.15 per cent point increase from 11.90 per cent recorded in June 2020.”
Inflation figures have been attributed to increase in Value Added Tax (VAT), pump price of fuel, border closure, COVID-19 impact on supply chains and insecurity in the food belt regions of the country.
