- Tuesday July 25th, 2023
- Posted by: inscameroun
- Category:
Driven by a 13.7% rise in food prices, average annual inflation stands at 7.5%
The National Institute of Statistics (NIS) is pleased to publish the brief on trends in household final consumption prices for May 2023. Compared to the previous month, the household final consumption prices rose by 0.4% in May 2023, following an increase of 0.7% in April. This month’s price increase was mainly as a result of a 1% rise in food prices, a 0.3% rise in transport costs and a 0.3% rise in costs relating to “housing, water, gas, electricity and other fuels”.
– The 1% rise in food prices was mainly due to higher prices for vegetables, “milk, cheese and eggs” and, to a lesser extent, fish and seafood. In contrast, prices of oils and fats continued to fall; prices of bread, cereals and fruit declined.
– Transport–related costs rose by 0.3% as a result of the increase in the cost of purchasing vehicles and transport services (particularly air and road passenger transport). Compared to the same month in 2022, the general price level rose by 7.8% in May 2023, mainly as a result of the rise in food prices by 11.8% and a 16.2% rise in transport costs. On average over the past twelve months, the inflation rate in May stood at 7.5%, exceeding the 3% threshold set by CEMAC. This increase was mainly as a result of the 13.7% rise in food prices and 8.4% rise in prices of furniture, household goods and routine maintenance items.
The underlying inflation rate1, which excludes the prices of petroleum products and cooking gas in particular, rose to 6.9%, following an increase of 6.8% in April 2023. Inflation was not only driven by fresh produce and energy products, whose prices rose by 11.7% and 3.3% respectively. Depending on the product origin, inflation is more local. It was greater for local products, whose prices rose by 8.0%, than for imported products, with a lesser increase of 5.9%.