Report by Monika Kristof
Executive summary
- The annual Inflation rate for Namibia continues to rise. This is attributed to the bottlenecks throughout the supply chain caused by the impact of theCovid-19 pandemic. See figure 1
- The annual inflation rate for October 2021 increased to (3.6%), up from (2.3%) recorded for the same period last year
- The main drivers of an increase in the annual inflation rate were transport, clothing and footwear, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house, miscellaneous goods and services, health and hotels, cafes and restaurants categories. See figure 2
- On a monthly basis, inflation rate increased by 0.1%
- The main drivers of an increase in the monthly inflation rate was observed in the transport, food and non-alcoholic beverages categories
Analysis
- Transport category recorded an increase in the annual inflation rate from (-1.2%) to (10.7%). This was mainly influenced by high demand for vehicle related goods (bicycles and motor cars) and the high prices of petrol and diesel
- The annual inflation rate for clothing and footwear increased from (-6.1%) to (-1.9%). This was influenced by a high price levels of clothing materials and adult footwear
- The annual inflation rate for housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels increased from (-1.3%) to (1.1%) as a consequence of an increase in the costs of regular maintenance and repair of dwellings
- Furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house recorded an increase in the annual inflation rate from (3.0%) to (5.3%). This came as a result of an increase in the price levels of furniture, furnishings, decorations, carpets, floor coverings, and repairs
- The annual inflation rate for miscellaneous goods and services increased from (5.4%) to (6.6%). This was driven by a high demand for financial services
- The annual inflation rate for the health category increased from (2.5%) to (3.1%) due to an increase in the demand for outpatient, medical, dental, and paramedical services.
Outlook
- We anticipate that inflation will remain elevated in the short to medium term and the cost-push factors will remain the key driver of inflation.
Figure 1: Annual Inflation rate
Figure 2: Categorical analysis Year on Year %, Namibia
