April inflation slows to 20.9 percent

Malawi’s year-on-year headline inflation rate for April 2016 as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has dropped by 1.2 percentage points to 20.9 percent from 22.1 percent in March 2016, according to the National Statistical Office (NSO).

This means that prices of goods and services in April increased at a reduced rate.

In its Stats Flash released yesterday, NSO has attributed the drop in inflation rate to a decline in food inflation.

Food inflation stood at 24.3 percent in April 2016 from 26.5 percent in March while non-food inflation remained at 17.7 percent while urban and rural inflation rates stood at 17.9 percent and 23.1 percent respectively.

At 20.9 percent, Malawi’s inflation rate still remains one of the highest in the 19-member Common Market for Eastern and Central Africa (Comesa) trade bloc under the harmonised consumer price index (HCPI).

Earlier, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Goodall Gondwe said fiscal authorities are working on reducing the rate of inflation by the end of the year.

He said high inflation rate is a dent on economic progress as it erodes people’s disposable incomes. n