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Zim inflation rises to 4,83pc in August…as month-on-month inflation declines

17 Sep, 2018 - 15:09 0 Views
Zim inflation rises to 4,83pc in August…as month-on-month inflation declines The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe

eBusiness Weekly

Tawanda Musarurwa
HARARE – Zimbabwe’s annual inflation rate rose 0,54 percent to 4, 83 percent in the month of August, latest figures from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStats) show.

This was a significant marginal upturn from the July 2018 figure of 4,29 percent.

“The year on year inflation rate (annual percentage change) for the month of August 2018 as measured by the all items Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 4,83 percent, gaining 0,54 percentage points on the July 2018 rate of 4,29 percent.

“This means that prices as measured by the all items CPI increased by an average of 4,83 percent between August 2017 and August 2018,” said ZimStats in its latest monthly report.

The year-on-year Food and Non Alcoholic beverages inflation prone to transitory shocks stood at 7, 52 percent while the Non-food inflation rate was 3, 58 percent.

On a monthly basis, the inflation decreased by 0,59 percentage points to 0, 39 percent.

“The month on month inflation rate in August 2018 was 0, 39 percent shedding 0, 59 percentage points on the July 2018 rate of 0,98 percent,” said ZimStats.

The decline in the month-on-month inflation rate will likely reduce concerns about assumptions of a runaway inflationary rate.

Some observers have attributed the quickening inflation to the continuance of the parallel currency market.

Zimbabwe currently uses a basket of currencies dominated by the United States dollar, as well as financial instruments – the bond notes, which are guaranteed by an international financial organisation.

Although the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has pegged and maintained the US dollar-bond note official rate at 1:1, cash shortages have resulted in a thriving black market for physical currency, both bond notes and United States dollar notes.

And it was largely assumed that the high demand for US dollars by both companies and individuals continues to push up the exchange rate.

The RBZ has estimated that Zimbabwe’s inflation can rise to 4,6 percent without necessarily hurting economic growth.

According to ZimStats, the month-on-month Food and Non Alcoholic Beverages inflation rate stood at 0,62 percent in August 2018, shedding 0,12 percentage points on the July 2018 rate of 0,74 percent.

The month-on-month non-food inflation rate stood at 0,28 percent, shedding 0, 81 percentage points on the July 2018 rate of 1,09 percent.

The Consumer Price Index for the month ending August 2018 stood at 101,04 compared to 100,65 in July 2018 and 96,39 in August 2017.

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