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Kenya: CBK Projects Steady Inflation Despite High Food Prices

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Nairobi — The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has projected that the country’s inflation will remain well-anchored amid the high food price woes faced by most Kenyans.

Speaking during the post MPC briefing on Wednesday, CBK Governor Patrick Njoroge said they anticipate and expect that March numbers will generally remain along the same lines as February, give or take 1 or 2 points.

He stated that food prices are expected to moderate in the coming weeks due to expected rains which will alleviate the shortages.

Even so, Njoroge warned that it should be expected that there will be a stick-up price shock on certain commodities.

“You go to a market or kiosk looking for a particular commodity and you find it is not the price that you are used to. However, this will not be on every commodity but rather just specific goods that most do not spend their significant disposable income on,” said Njoroge.

Latest inflation data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows that overall inflation stood at 5.1 per cent in February, a decrease from 5.4 per cent in January.

The apex bank also retained its growth outlook in 2022 at 5.9 per cent despite constraints posed by global shocks such as the Russia-Ukraine war.

“Our growth projection has not changed, Russia and Ukraine are not significant trading partners for us and as such, our GDP projection would not dramatically deviate from the war,” Njoroge said.

He noted that all economic indicators point to a strong performance of the Kenyan economy in the first quarter of 2022, supported by robust activity in construction, information and communication, wholesale and retail trade, transport and storage, and manufacturing sectors.