The overall year-on-year inflation rate as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 6.9 per cent, in October 2023, data from the Kenya Nationa Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) has revealed.
During the reference month, all sectors continued to show price rises.
Prices of commodities under Transport (13.6%); Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and other fuels (7.8%); and Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages (7.8%) between October 2022 and October 2023. These three divisions account for over 57 per cent of the weights of the 13 broad categories.
KNBS Director General Macdonald G. Obudho says the CPI and inflation are generated from data collected through monthly surveys of retail prices that target a representative basket of household consumption goods and services.
“The data collection is conducted in the second and third weeks of the month from a sample of outlets located in 50 data collection zones across the country,” Obudho added.
Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages Index increased by 1.3 per cent between September 2023 and October 2023. This food inflation was mainly attributed to increased prices of some food items, which outweighed the decrease in prices of other foodstuffs.
Prices of maize flour dropped in October
Prices of potatoes, tomatoes and oranges increased by 9.6, 5.4 and 2.8 per cent, respectively.
During the same period, however, prices of maize flour-sifted, fortified maize flour and wheat flour-white decreased by 4.1, 3.2 and 0.8 per cent, respectively.
The Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas as well as Other Fuels Index increased by 1.9 per cent between September 2023 and October 2023. This was mainly due to an increase in the prices of gas, electricity of 200 kWh, 50 kWh and kerosene by 7.3, 5.0, 3.3 and 1.2 per cent, respectively, between September 2023 and October 2023.
In addition, the Transport Index increased by 1.5 per cent between September 2023 and October 2023. The sector increase was mainly attributed to a rise in prices of petrol and diesel by 2.7 per cent and 2.2 per cent, respectively.
