Inflation soars in 2024

The latest Malawi Consumer Price Index report reveals a rise in the inflation rate to 28.1% in December 2024, up from 27.0% in November, largely driven by escalating maize prices and other food costs.

According to the National Statistical Office (NSO), food inflation reached 35.6% in December, compared to 33.7% during the same period last year.

Non-food inflation, while still rising, showed a slower increase, dropping slightly from 17.2% to 16.8%.

The NSO further reported that the annual average year-on-year inflation rate for 2024 stood at 32.2%, an increase from 28.8% in 2023.

Food inflation for 2024 was recorded at 40.2%, up from 37.1% in 2023, while non-food inflation also rose to 21.2%, compared to 18.8% the previous year.

In the Producer Price Index, the NSO highlighted that the year-on-year growth rate for September 2024 was 29.9%, marking a decline from 37.5% in August.

Among key sectors, utilities registered the highest price growth rate at 40.7%, compared to 29.0% in the manufacturing sector over the period from September 2023 to September 2024.

Commenting on the situation, John Kapito, Executive Director of the Consumers’ Association of Malawi (CAMA), attributed the ongoing price hikes to an imbalance between supply and demand.

“There is an urgent need to increase the supply of critical food items like maize to stabilize prices. The shortage of maize is one of the primary drivers of the rising inflation,”Kapito said.