Producer Inflation Drops
The Producer Price Inflation (PPI) dropped to 25.57 percent in January 2010 from 27.69 percent in December 2009.
However, the monthly change rate for January 2010 was higher than the rate in December 2009.
Gold prices were high on the world market last year, but the mining and utilities sub-sectors recorded negative rates.
According to figures released by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) yesterday, manufacturing, which is the most important sector with 69.75 percent share of all industry, recorded an inflation rate of 28.84 percent.
Mining and quarrying sub-sector, with 13.97 percent share of all industry, recorded the highest inflation rate of 41.40 percent.
The utilities sub-sector recorded the lowest inflation rate of 0.66 percent, but the looming increase in electricity bills is expected to push inflation up.
In the manufacturing sector, the producer inflation for 2010 began on high levels.
However, there were very different producer inflation rates among the major groups in the sector.
There was an appreciable inflation rate in the manufacture of coke, refined petroleum products, while manufacture of wood and products of wood and cork and manufacture of basic metals recorded a negative inflation rate of 7.85 percent and 9.84 percent respectively.
With regards to petroleum index, change rates had a major influence on the manufacturing sector.
Between January and October 2009, producer inflation in the industry recorded a negative rate.
Utilities, which comprises of production, transmission and distribution of electricity and purification and distribution of water recorded 0.66 percent inflation, but its monthly change was however negative.
With regards to the yearly trend, the all industry year-on-year inflation was relatively stable for the first five months of 2009, averaging 11.69 percent.
There was however an upsurge in June which declined to 14.12 percent in August 2009.
The rate increased thereafter and recorded the highest rate of 27.69 percent in December 2009, representing the highest in 2009.
By Charles Nixon Yeboah