Food And Non-Alcoholic Beverage Categories See Major Price Adjustments

Justicia Shipena
Food and non-alcoholic beverages were among the categories that saw the largest levels of price adjustments during the past month, according to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA).
On Tuesday, NSA released its Namibia Consumer Price Index report which examines the monthly inflation rate performance in the country.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages encountered price changes of 11.7% during the review period, while leisure and culture saw price changes of 10.1%.
“Miscellaneous goods and services (8.1%); Furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house (7.2%); and hotels, cafes and restaurants (6.7%),” NSA noted.
In contrast, food and non-alcoholic beverages, which make up 16.5% of the basket, had annual inflation of 11.7% in June 2023.
According to the NSA report, the monthly inflation rate for this category was 0.0% in June 2023 as opposed to 0.7% in May.
“The increase in the annual inflation rate of this category was mainly reflected in the subgroups of electricity, gas, and other fuels which increased from 0.6% to 6.4% and rental payments of dwelling from 1.4% to 2.%.”
Meanwhile, the food subcategories recorded an annual inflation rate of 11.7% during June 2023.
The increase, NSA said was mainly observed in cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, onions and beetroot.
Among the food subcategories, bread and cereals accounted for the largest weight of food items that consumers purchase, weighing in at 4.8 percent, followed by meat at 3.5%, vegetables at 1.4%, and milk, cheese, and eggs at 1.2% each.
Bread and cereals were 17.3% more expensive in June 2023, the reportstated.
In addition, prices for vegetables rose by an average of 18.5% in June 2023 compared to 4.8% in the same month the previous year.
Food products experienced inflation of 10.8% in June 2023 for the same time frame.
The price of ready-made frozen meals, spices, and condiments, as well as mayonnaise, mustard, and salad dressings, has increased..
“On average prices for meat rose by 8.3% during June 2023 compared to 4.5% recorded during the same period a year earlier. Pork recorded the highest change followed by ham, bacon, sausages and chicken, birds subcategory.”
This comes as in June of this year, annual inflation was 5.3% compared to 6.0% in June of 2022.
The inflation rate was down from the 0.2% recorded the month before to 0.1% month over month.
“The annual inflation rate stood at 5.3%. The annual inflation rate for goods was estimated at 6.5%. The annual inflation rate for services stood at 3.4%,” reads the report.
The report also stated that the average annual inflation rate for the twelve-month period from July 2022 to June 2023 was projected to be 6.8% higher than the average annual inflation rate for the six-month period from June 2022 to June 2023, which stood at 6.7%.
“On a monthly basis, inflation rate was estimated at 0.1% during the period under review compared to 0.2% witnessed during the previous month.”
According to the NSA, leisure and culture, food and non-alcoholic beverages, hotels, cafes, and restaurants were the main sources of the inflation rate’s gradual increase.