Namibia’s Producer Price Index (PPI) increased significantly in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024, driven primarily by rising production costs in the manufacturing sector, according to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA).
According to the NSA, the manufacturing index rose by 7.8% year-on-year, reaching 108.3 basis points in Q4 2024, up from 100.5 basis points in Q4 2023.
“This growth was influenced by rising prices in key sub-sectors, including the processing and preservation of meat (20.2%), the manufacturing of non-alcoholic beverages (5.0%), and alcoholic beverages (3.1%),” the NSA noted.
On a quarterly basis, the manufacturing index increased by 4.3 basis points, rising from 104.0 in Q3 2024 to 108.3 in Q4 2024, reflecting a quarterly growth of 4.2%.
The increase was attributed to higher prices in the manufacture of non-metallic mineral products such as cement (14.1%), the production of other food items (6.2%), the processing and preservation of meat (5.6%), fish processing onshore (5.6%), and the cutting and polishing of diamonds (4.4%).
The overall PPI for production registered a quarter-on-quarter increase of 2.9% and a year-on-year growth of 5.2%.
“This increase was driven by rising prices in both the manufacturing and mining and quarrying sectors, which grew by 4.2% and 2.4% quarter-on-quarter and by 7.8% and 4.8% year-on-year, respectively,” the NSA noted.
The mining and quarrying PPI rose by 2.4% in Q4 2024 compared to Q3 2024, increasing from 100.0 to 102.4 basis points.
The NSA attributed this growth primarily to price increases in salt (42.5%), gold (8.3%), zinc (3.2%), and uranium (2.9%).
“On an annual basis, the mining and quarrying index grew by 4.8%, rising from 97.7 basis points in Q4 2023 to 102.4 in Q4 2024. However, this growth was tempered by a decline in diamond prices (-16.8%), which slowed the overall expansion in the sector,” the NSA reported.
In contrast, the electricity generation, transmission, and distribution index remained unchanged at 100.0 basis points in Q4 2024, reflecting zero growth both quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year.
Meanwhile, the water collection, treatment, and supply sector recorded modest price increases, rising by 0.4% quarter-on-quarter and 1.1% year-on-year.
