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Rising food prices push up inflation rate to 8.9%

Rising food prices have pushed up September inflation rate by 0.5 percentage points to 8.9 percent, published National Statistical Office (NSO) figures show.

During the month under review, food inflation rose by 1.2 percentage points to 10.9 percent from 9.7 percent recorded the previous month.

However, non-food inflation remained constant at 7.2 percent.

During the same month last year, the NSO figures show that headline inflation rate stood at 7.1 percent.

Reads the 2021 NSO Malawi Consumer Price Index Newsletter: “The divisions above the 8.9 percent headline inflation rate [year-on-year] for September 2021 are; food [10.9 percent] and transportation [9.3 percent].

“In the non-food category, the three categories with the highest year-on-year inflation for September 2021 are transportation, furnishing and household and housing, water and electricity at 9.3 percent, 8.4 percent and 8.3 percent, respectively.”

Maize, as part of food, contributes about 42.5 percent to the consumer price index, a measure of price change in a basket of constant quantity and quality of goods and service.

During the month under review, retail maize prices increased by five percent and averaged K147 per kilogramme (kg), according to the International Food Policy Research International (Ifpri) September 2021 Malawi Monthly Maize Market Report.

During the review period, Ministry of Agriculture announced that it had revised upwards maize selling price in all Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (Admarc) outlets from K160 to K205 per kilogramme.

In an earlier interview, Consumers Association of Malawi executive director John Kapito hoped the maize prices would be maintained, observing that “there are enough maize stocks on the market that have stabilised the prices of maize”.

Maize production in 2021 is estimated at 4.5 million metric tonnes (MT), which is 27 percent higher than the estimated national requirement of 3.5 million MT.

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