The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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Kenya’s annual inflation rate eased slightly to 6.4 per cent in June, down from 6.7 per cent recorded in May, offering modest relief to consumers even as the cost of food and transport remained elevated.
According to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), consumer prices in June were 6.4 per cent higher than they were during the same month last year. On a monthly basis, prices increased by 0.2 per cent compared to May.
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KNBS attributed the annual inflation to continued price increases in key spending categories, including food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels. These sectors account for more than 57 per cent of total household spending.
The agency noted that inflation was largely driven by an 8.6 per cent increase in food and non-alcoholic beverage prices, a 16.1 per cent rise in transport costs, and a 3.4 per cent increase in housing and utility-related expenses over the past year.
Food continued to exert significant pressure on household budgets, with the food index climbing 8.6 per cent year-on-year.
Within the month, the prices of sukuma wiki increased by 4.0 per cent, spinach rose by 3.1 per cent, while loose maize grain went up by 1.2 per cent. However, consumers enjoyed slight price reductions on tomatoes, which fell by 2.4 per cent, as well as marginal declines in the prices of beans and brown wheat flour.
Transport remained the biggest contributor to inflation, posting a 16.1 per cent annual increase despite lower fuel prices during June.
KNBS reported that the average cost of diesel in Nairobi dropped from Sh232.86 to Sh222.86 per litre, while petrol prices edged down slightly from Sh214.25 to Sh214.03 per litre.
Electricity bills also eased, with the average cost of consuming 200 kilowatt-hours declining by approximately Sh59. The cost of 50 kilowatt-hours also reduced, helping to slow inflation within the housing category.
Even with the overall decline in inflation, prices of several everyday household items continued to rise, including cooking oil, sugar, milk, cabbage and detergents.
Meanwhile, core inflation—which excludes food and fuel prices—fell marginally to 3.1 per cent in June from 3.2 per cent in May.
Non-core inflation remained high at 15.1 per cent, reflecting ongoing fluctuations in food and energy prices.
KNBS noted that food was the largest contributor to the country’s inflation rate, accounting for 2.5 percentage points, while transport contributed 1.55 percentage points.
