The latest report from the National Agency for Statistics and Demography (ANSD) on the Harmonized Consumer Price Index (IHPC) indicates an overall increase of 1.0% in prices in the third quarter (editor’s note: covers the period from July 1 to September 30, 2024), compared to the previous quarter. This increase mainly results from the increase in the prices of “food products and non-alcoholic drinks”, “miscellaneous goods and services”, as well as “health” services, “restaurants and hotels” and “alcoholic drinks, tobacco and narcotics”.
On the other hand, an annual decrease of 1.1% was recorded, driven by the decline in prices in certain key sectors.
A marked increase in fresh vegetables and fish
Prices of “food and non-alcoholic beverages” increased by 1.8% during the quarter, mainly due to the marked increase in prices of fresh leafy vegetables (+25.4%), root vegetables (+25.4%), +18.3%) and fresh fish (+15.3%). On the other hand, this increase was partially attenuated by the drop in prices of bread (-7.2%), citrus fruits (-5.9%) and unprocessed cereals (-3.9%).
In annual comparison, this category recorded a decrease of 2.7%, with a significant decline in the prices of fresh leaf vegetables (-29.7%).
Health, restaurants and hotels
According to the report, health-related spending increased by 0.8% this quarter, notably due to the increase in prices of traditional medicines (+4.3%). “Restaurants and hotels” services also saw a slight increase (+0.3%), while “miscellaneous goods and services” such as jewelry and beauty care showed growth of 1.4 %.
Among the few sectors in decline, “communication” goods and services showed a notable drop of 3.4%, driven by a reduction in prices for telephone communication services (-4.3%). Likewise, prices linked to “housing, water, gas, electricity and other fuels” decreased by 0.3%, mainly thanks to the drop in the prices of liquid fuels (-3.5%) and maintenance products. (-2.3%).
Local products and imported products
Local products recorded an increase of 1.4%, while imported products saw their prices decrease by 0.6%. In terms of sustainability, non-durable goods increase by 1.4%, durable goods increase slightly (+0.1%), while services show a marginal decrease (-0.1%).
