Business Reporter
THE headline annual inflation rate for November 2024 stood at 3.0% compared to 5.7% registered in November 2023. On a monthly basis, the inflation rate was 0.3%, slightly lower than the 0.4% registered during the preceding month.
This is according to the Namibia Consumer Price Index bulletin for November 2024.
The primary drivers of the annual inflation rate of 3.0% in November 2024 were ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas, and Other Fuels’ and ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages,’ each contributing 1.1 percentage points, while the category ‘Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco’ contributed 0.7 percentage points.
The zonal inflation rates for the month of November 2024 revealed that Zone 2 (Khomas region) recorded the highest rate of 4.1%, while Zone 1 (comprising Kavango East, Kavango West, Kunene, Ohangwena, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa, and Zambezi regions) and Zone 3 (comprising //Kharas, Erongo, Hardap, and Omaheke regions) each recorded an annual inflation rate of 2.3%.
The analysis of the average retail prices for selected products in November 2024 showed that consumers in Zone 3 paid the highest price for a 5kg bag of maize meal at N$71.19, followed by Zone 2 at N$70.99, while the lowest price of N$70.36 was paid by consumers in Zone 1. Meanwhile, consumers in Zone 2 paid the highest price for 100g Rooibos tea bags at N$39.28, followed by Zone 3 at N$36.99, with Zone 1 consumers paying the lowest price of N$32.98.
In comparison to the headline inflation rate of 3.0%, the core inflation rate stood at 3.9%. The term “core inflation” describes a measure of inflation that excludes certain volatile elements from the overall inflation calculation. These volatile elements typically include food and energy prices, which tend to experience significant price fluctuations due to factors such as weather conditions, geopolitical events, or changes in supply and demand.
Picture for illustrative purposes only.
