Namibia’s annual inflation rate dipped to 4.9% in May 2024, from 6.3% recorded in May 2023, latest data from the Namibia Statistics Agency shows.
“The headline annual inflation rate for May 2024, stood at 4.9 percent compared to 6.3% recorded in May 2023. On a monthly basis, the inflation rate witnessed an increase of 0.3 percent compared to 0.7 percent recorded a month earlier,” said NSA Statistician-General and CEO Alex Shimuafeni.
NSA reported that food and non-alcoholic beverages registered an annual inflation rate of 4.7 percent in May 2024, compared to the 12.5 percent witnessed during May 2023.
This positive shift can be attributed to falling prices for essential items like maize meal, bread flour, and some vegetables.
It added that on a monthly basis, the price levels for the food and non-alcoholic beverages category were at 0.5 percent in May 2024, the same rate as in April 2024.
Furthermore, alcoholic beverages and tobacco annual inflation was observed at 6.6 percent during the period under review compared to 7.5 percent registered in the prior period last year while a noteworthy increase to 6.8% was seen in tobacco prices.
The housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels category saw an increase from 2.7% in May 2023 to 3.7% in May 2024.
“The increase in the annual price levels of this category was reflected in the subgroups of electricity, gas and fuels (from 5.9% to 9.0%); water supply, sewerage service and refuse collection (from 2.5% to 3.4%) and rental payments for dwelling (from 2.1% to 2.6%),” the report says.
Meanwhile, goods annual inflation stood at 6.2 percent in May 2024 compared to 8.3 percent witnessed in May 2023, while annual inflation rate for services stood at 2.9 percent compared to 3.4 percent in the prior comparative period.
The country’s transport inflation during the period under review, rose to 7.7% in May due to spiking fuel prices and higher licence and registration fees, according to NSA data.
NSA said this increase contributed 1.2 percentage points to overall inflation. According to the NSA’s Consumer Price Index, the annual inflation rate recorded for the operation of personal transport equipment increased by 9.8 percent in May 2024 compared to 4.7 percent recorded in May 2023.
“The increase was mainly witnessed in the subcategories of petrol/diesel (from 4.8% to 13.7%); License and registration fees (from -2.0% to 2.6%) and spare parts and accessories (from 4.3% to 8.6%),” the report read.
The report also revealed variations in inflation rates across Namibia’s three economic zones. Zone 3 (//Kharas, etc.) witnessed the most significant inflation slowdown to 4.0% compared to 6.3% in May 2023 due to price moderation in food and beverages, miscellaneous goods, and furnishings.
Zone 1 (Kavango East, etc.) experienced an inflation slowdown to 5.1% compared to 6.3% in May 2023 due to slower price increases in various categories.
Similar to Zone 1, Zone 2 (Khomas) witnessed a slowdown to 5.2% in contrast to 6.2% reported in May 2023 attributed to slower price hikes in recreation, food & beverages, and furnishings.
The NSA also introduced a new metric to the index, the core inflation rate, which excludes volatile elements like food and energy prices.
The core inflation rate stood at 4.1% for May 2024, suggesting that underlying inflationary pressures remain relatively stable despite fluctuations in specific categories.
