The annual inflation rate for July 2022 has increased to 9.9 percent from 9.7 percent recorded in June 2022, which means that on average, prices of goods and services increased by 9.9 percent between July 2021 and July 2022.
Zambia Statistics Agency-ZAMSTATS Interim Statistician General Mulenga Musepa said the increase in inflation was mainly due to price movements in non-food items.
Musepa explained that nonfood inflation for July 2022 was recorded at 7.2 percent from 6.9 percent in June 2022, an outturn mainly on account of price movements in items such as garments (men’s shirt imported, men’s trousers imported, ladies skirt imported, ladies dress imported), fuels and lubricants (diesel, petrol, engine oil), cooking oil and charcoal.
Speaking during a briefing monitored by the Zambian Business Times-ZBT, Musepa noted that food inflation for July 2022 was recorded at 12.0 percent from 11.9 percent in June 2022 mainly attributed to price movements in fish (buka buka, fresh kapenta, dried bream, dried kapenta), fruits (orange, lemon, banana, pawpaw) and cooking oil.
He said Copperbelt and Lusaka provinces contributed the highest at 2.5 percentage points to the overall annual inflation of 9.9 percent in July 2022. Southern province was second, contributing 1.2 percentage points while North Western, Eastern and Western provinces had the lowest contributions of 0.4 and 0.5 percentage points, respectively.
Musepa mentioned that total trade for the period January to June 2022 decreased by 2.5 percent, from K181.3 billion to K176.7 billion in 2021 for the same period adding that the country recorded a trade surplus of K2.2 billion in June 2022 compared to a surplus of K3.4 billion in May 2022 indicating a 36 percent decrease in the surplus.
He noted that the total value of exports for the period January to June 2022 was K102.3 billion, exports decreased by 6.3 percent to K16.2 billion in June 2022 from K17.3 billion in May 2022 mainly on account of a 9.0, 11.5 and 0.4 percent decrease in export earnings from intermediate goods, capital goods and consumer goods, respectively.
Musepa said imports increased to K14.1 billion in June 2022 from K13.9 billion in May 2022 mainly due to the 52.7 percent increases in import bills of capital goods.
