Ghana: Currency rebound pulls down inflation

Ghana's annual inflation dropped to 17.3 per cent in August from 17.9 per cent recorded in previous…

Ghana's annual inflation dropped to 17.3 per cent in August from 17.9 per cent recorded in previous month due to marginal gains by the local currency against the greenback, a government statistician told journalists on Wednesday.

"We had a decline in the inflation rate for the non-food group and this was mainly driven by the gains made by the cedi as we saw between July and August," Philomena Nyarko said.

The cedi further gained value against major foreign currencies on Wednesday, with Bank of Ghana quoting $1 to 3.7 cedi while one Euro was going for 4.1 cedi and £1 went for 5.7 cedi at interbank forex market.

The inflation rate for imported items was 18.1 per cent compared to 21.2 recorded, but the rate for locally produced items was 17.0 per cent, the same as the rate in July.

The price drivers for the food inflation rate included mineral water, soft drinks, fruit and vegetable juices, coffee, tea and cocoa, sugar, jam, honey, chocolate and confectionery, food products, meat and meat products, vegetables and milk, cheese and eggs.