Togo: Inflation rate at 6.9% in August 2022, same as July 2022
Friday, 16 September 2022 16:42 
(Togo First) - Togo's annual inflation rate was 6.9% in August 2022, the same as in July 2022. This is according to the latest data released by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic and Demographic Studies (INSEED).
The inflation rate stayed the same while goods’ prices, food excluded, rose by 1.8%, nationwide. A monthly decline of 2.1% from August 2021 is observed under the "Food and non-alcoholic beverages" category. The latter, let’s emphasize, represents over 30% of the INSEED’s National Harmonized Consumer Price Index (NHCPI) - a figure that provides a monthly overview of changes in the prices of consumer products.
Last month, Togo’s NHCPI was down 0.3% against its level in July 2022, in the context of the global energy crisis.
Energy and Transport
According to the INSEED, "this increase is the consequence of the rise in prices of products in the consumption functions "Transport" (+4.8%), "Housing, water, gas, electricity, and other fuels" (+3.7%), and "Restaurants and Hotels" (+1.1%)."
Overall, energy products experienced the largest increase (8.2%) between July and August, while "fresh products" saw their prices fall by 3.8%.
The global crisis, paired with freight costs and international supply tensions, keeps weighing on consumption in Togo, on imports especially.
According to the INSEED’s estimates, prices of imported products increased by 2.5% while those of local products decreased by 0.5%.
The same trend extended to prices of products from the secondary sector, which rose by 1.6%, and those of the primary sector, which fell by 4.5%, and which partly cushioned the shock.
Quarterly, transport prices rose by 9%
Compared to May 2022, the general price level in August 2022 in Togo increased by 1.1% quarterly, with increases in almost all major consumer product categories.
Thus, while the indices for the consumption functions "Communication" and "Health" (remained stable) and "Food and non-alcoholic beverages" (decreased by 1.7%), those for the other consumption functions increased.
The largest quarterly increase observed was in "Transportation", which rose by 9.1%, followed by "Housing, water, gas, electricity, and other fuels" up 4.4%. Next are "Restaurants and Hotels" (+1.7%); "Clothing and footwear" (+2.2%); "Furniture, household goods and routine household maintenance" (+2.9%); "Miscellaneous goods and services" (+0.9%); "Leisure and culture" (+0.7%); "Tobacco and drugs" (+1.5%) and "Education" (+0.3%).
Year-on-year, the general price level rose by 7%, compared to August 2021.
Ayi Renaud Dossavi
