The Producer Price Inflation rate (PPI) which measures the ex-factory prices of goods and services in the country has increased to 8.8% in September 2021. This rate indicates the year-on-year change in PPI between September 2020 and September 2021.
The current rate represents a 0.7 percentage point increase in producer inflation relative to the 8.1 percent recorded in August 2021. It is also higher than the 8.4% recorded in July 2021. The implication is that, the average prices that domestic producers received for the production of their goods and services have gone up compared to a year ago.
Overall, the Producer Price Index rose to 781.9 in September 2021, from 718.4 in the corresponding month last year. The current rate, in absolute terms, is 0.9 percentage points lower than the 9.7 percent recorded in September 2020.
The month-on-month change in producer price index between August 2021 and September 2021 was 0.9 percent. This is higher than the 0.5 percent recorded between July 2021 and August 2021 as well as the 0.1 percent recorded between June and July this year.
PPI Trends
Notably, 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.
In September 2020, the producer price inflation rate for all industry was 9.7 percent. The rate declined consistently to record 7.0 percent in December 2020. In March 2021, the rate rose to 13.0 percent, but dropped to 10.9 percent in April 2021. In May 2021, the rate increased to 11.8 percent but decreased continuously to record 8.1 percent in August 2021 before rising to 8.8 percent in September 2021.
The producer price inflation in the Mining and Quarrying sub-sector was 0.5 percent in September 2021. This represents a 3.7 percentage points increase over the -3.2 percent recorded in August 2021. It is however, lower than the 2.2 percent recorded in July 2021. The utility subsector recorded 0.1 percent inflation rate for September 2021.
Manufacturing Sector
The producer inflation for the Manufacturing subsector, which constitutes more than two-thirds of the total industry, increased by 0.2 percentage points to record 13.0 percent in September 2021.
In September 2021, four out of the sixteen major groups in the manufacturing sub-sector recorded inflation rates higher than the sector average of 13.0 percent. Manufacture of coke, refined petroleum products and nuclear fuel recorded the highest inflation rate of 27.4 percent, compared to 25.3 percent recorded in August 2021.
Manufacture of other non-metallic mineral products recorded an annual rate of 12.7 percent in September 2021, as compared to 11.1 percent in August 2021.
Manufacture of food products and beverages also registered an annual inflation rate of 9.9 percent in September 2021, as compared to 10.2 percent in August 2021. For Electricity and Water Supply, the inflation rate was 0.2 percent in September 2021 relative to 0.1 percent in August 2021.
According to the GSS, the Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media registered the least inflation rate of 0.0 percent in September this year.
Petroleum Price Index
The producer inflation rate in the petroleum subsector was -0.3 percent in September 2020. The rate declined to record -5.0 percent in November 2020. Subsequently, it increased continuously to peak at 31.0 percent in March 2021 but declined to 23.9 percent in June 2021. However, the declining trend could not be maintained as it increased to 27.4 percent in September 2021.
The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) warned that the figures for September 2021 are provisional. This means that they are subject to revision when additional data become available. But it noted that all other indicators are final.
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