Average ex-factory prices of goods and services in the country, measured by the Producer Inflation Rate, rose by 7.9 percentage points in March 2022 relative to the rate of 21.4 percent recorded in February this year.

According to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the Produce Price Inflation rate for March 2022 was 29.3 percent. This rate indicates the year-on-year increase in PPI between March 2021 and March 2022.

March witnessed a higher increase in producer inflation relative to a 4.6 percentage points increase in producer inflation in February over the rate of 16.8 percent recorded in January 2022.

The month-on-month change in the producer price index between February 2022 and March 2022 was 6.8 percent, higher than the 3.9 percent recorded in February.

PPI for the various sub-sectors

The Ghana Statistical Service provided information on inflation rates for all industry and its three major sub-sectors for the last twelve months. The major sub-sectors include Mining and Quarrying, Manufacturing and Utilities.

The GSS disclosed in its March 2022 PPI Newsletter released on April 20, 2022, that the producer price inflation in the Mining and Quarrying sub-sector increased by 19.8 percentage points to 33.6 percent in March 2022. This compares with the rate of 13.8 percent recorded in February 2022.

The producer inflation for the Manufacturing subsector, which constitutes more than two-thirds of the total industry, increased by 7.2 percentage points to 36.0 percent in the third month of the year. In February, inflation in the Manufacturing subsector increased by 4.0 percentage points to 28.8 percent over January’s rate.

In March 2022, two out of the sixteen major groups in the manufacturing sub-sector recorded inflation rates higher than the sector average of 36.0 percent. Manufacture of coke, refined petroleum products and nuclear fuel recorded the highest inflation rate of 67.4 percent.

Manufacture of food products and beverages recorded the second highest inflation rate of 43.1 percent. Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products also recorded an inflation rate of 29.4 percent. The Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media experienced the least inflation rate of 2.6 percent. The utility sub-sector also recorded a 1.1 percent inflation rate for March 2022, higher than the 0.5 percent recorded in February 2022.

Petroleum Price Index

The producer inflation rate in the petroleum subsector was 31.0 percent in March 2021. The rate decreased to 28.0 percent in April 2021 and subsequently dropped to 25.3 percent in August 2021. Thereafter, it increased continuously to 58.4 percent in November 2021 but dropped to 35.0 percent in January 2022. In February 2022, the rate increased to 44.3 percent and inched up to 67.4 percent in March 2022.

Trends in producer price inflation

In March 2021, the producer price inflation rate for all industry was 13.0 percent. The rate decreased to 10.9 percent in April 2021 but surged to 11.8 percent in May 2021. The rate decreased continuously to a record 8.1 percent in August 2021. Subsequently, the rate resumes a continuous upward trend, rising to a record 29.3 percent in March 2022.