Zambia has for the first time in 2020 recorded a reduction in annual inflation of 0.7% after its persistent increase in the first quarter of the year.
The year-on-year inflation as measured by the all items Consumer Price Index for the month of June 2020 decreased to 15.9%, down from 16.6% recorded in May 2020 meaning that on average prices of goods and services increased by 15.9 percentage between June 2019 and June 2020.
Zambia Statistics Agency Interim Statistician General Mulenga Musepa has disclosed that the decrease in the annual inflation was attributed to price decreases in food items.
He said the year to date inflation was recorded at 9.3% in June 2020, higher than that of the corresponding period in 2019 of 5.3% meaning that the average prices of goods and services increased at a faster rate in 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
Musepa said the year-on-year food inflation rate for June 2020 was recorded at 16.3% compared to 17.5% in May 2020 indicating a decrease of 1.2% points.
He added that this development was mainly attributed to reductions in prices of food items such as cereals (Breakfast mealie meal, Roller meal, Maize grain) and Fish like Dried Bream, Dried Kapenta(Chisense), Dried Kapenta(Mpulungu), Bukabuka and Fresh Kapenta).
Further, the year-on-year non-food inflation rate for June 2020 was recorded at 15.5% same as recorded in May 2020 meaning that on average prices of non-food items increased by 15.5% between June 2019 and June 2020.
Meanwhile, a disaggregation of the annual inflation rate by province shows that the annual inflation rate for June 2020 increased for Luapula, North-Western and Western provinces. Annual inflation decreased for Central, Copperbelt, Eastern, Lusaka, Northern and Southern provinces.
“Provincial changes in annual inflation rate show that between June 2019 and June 2020, Northen province had the highest rate of 20.2%, followed by Central at 17.8%. Eastern province recorded the lowest annual rate of inflation at 11.8%,” Musepa added.
More analysis to follow
