• About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Kenyan Business Feed
  • Home
  • African
  • News
    • Agribusiness
    • Courts
    • Hospitality
    • Manufacturing
  • Education
  • Health
  • Reports & Analysis
  • World Business
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • African
  • News
    • Agribusiness
    • Courts
    • Hospitality
    • Manufacturing
  • Education
  • Health
  • Reports & Analysis
  • World Business
No Result
View All Result
Kenyan Business Feed
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Drought effects push inflation rate to 18-month high – Citizentv.co.ke

Kenyan Business Feed by Kenyan Business Feed
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

[ad_1]

The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) has released its monthly consumer price index for the month of April quoting inflation at 6.58 percent.

The revised price-pressure index is a marginal surge from the 4.35 percentage points posted in March and represents the highest inflation rate in 18 months since September 2017 when the hike in consumer prices topped 7.06 percent.

The inflationary pressures are attributable to the effects of drought arising from the delayed onset of the long-rains season which led to a notable hike in food commodity prices.

“Between March and April 2019, the food and non-alcoholic drink’s index increased by 6.86 percent. This increase was mainly due to drought conditions which prevailed in the better part of April 2019 causing an upsurge in the costs of some food stuffs,” noted the KNBS monthly consumer price survey.

A 2 kilogram of sifted maize flour for instance rose to an average of Ksh.112.26 in a month from Ksh.86.47 in March, this also as the price of a kilo of kale increased by Ksh.13.41 to Ksh.66.40.

The price of a kilo of sugar, however, eased by 12.6 percent to Ksh.102.55 as did the price of a kilo of cooking oil and a 13-kilo Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinder whose cost eased to Ksh.2184.85.

The hike in food prices whose weighted cost on the CPI index averages at over 30 percent hence resulted in a significant bearing on the average inflation rate during the month of April.

Further to the biting drought, the transport index tightened by 0.86 percent as the costing to petroleum products continued to head north reflecting on prevailing crude prices in the international market.

The price per litre of all the three basic petroleum products — petrol, diesel and kerosene — expanded by an average of 5.3 percent, 5.8 and 2.2 percent respectively in the mid-month review to maximum retail pump prices by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), to further heighten the inflationary pressures.

The onset of the long-rainfall in the latter half of the month is however expected to ease inflation fears even as the agriculture and allied-sector prices the cost to the delayed rainfall-onset.

In spite of the notable surge to the inflation rate, the measure remains anchored within the 2.5 to 7.5 percent targets by government under its medium term plan which seeks to keep inflationary pressures in check under ongoing fiscal consolidation.




For Citizen TV updates
Join @citizentvke Telegram channel


Video Of The Day: This new man in Harambee Stars jersey Christopher Mbamba


[ad_2]

Source link


Kenyan Business Feed is the top Kenyan Business Blog. We share news from Kenya and across the region. To contact us with any alert, please email us to [email protected]
Kenyan Business Feed

Kenyan Business Feed

Recommended.

East African leaders walking a debt tightrope

May 12, 2019

Sponsored: Toyota Kenya launches fifth generation Rav4

May 13, 2019

Subscribe.

Trending.

Tourism CS Rebecca Miano announces new measures at Maasai Mara, including ranger deployments, clearer signage, and public education following a viral tourist incident.

Government Tightens Maasai Mara Rules After Viral Tourist Clip

August 26, 2025
Safaricom launches B Live, a first of its kind service allowing customers to buy internet access by the hour, offering flexible one hour three hour and six hour bundles for students creators and professionals.

Safaricom Expands Digital Options with Innovative B Live Product That Adapts to Different Usage Habits

August 21, 2025

Co-op Bank Empowers Over 249,000 Kenyan MSMEs with Loans and Training

August 21, 2025

Student Leaders Slam HELB and Ministry Over University Funding Delays

August 1, 2025
Through new mobile-based loan products, Safaricom is expanding credit access for Kenyan small businesses, targeting informal traders and merchants with fast, digital financing tools.

Safaricom Deepens MSME Lending with New M-PESA Credit Suite

July 14, 2025
Kenyan Business Feed

We focus on news, analysis, and reports about Kenyan business, covering sectors like agriculture, finance, tourism, and technology.

Categories

  • African
  • Agribusiness
  • Courts
  • Education
  • Health
  • Hospitality
  • Manufacturing
  • NetWorths
  • News
  • Reports & Analysis
  • World Business

Popular News

  • First look at the prison where El Chapo may live for the rest of his life

    First look at the prison where El Chapo may live for the rest of his life

    2157 shares
    Share 1040 Tweet 466
  • Sameer Africa CEO Sacked

    1804 shares
    Share 750 Tweet 439

Recent News

Tourism CS Rebecca Miano announces new measures at Maasai Mara, including ranger deployments, clearer signage, and public education following a viral tourist incident.

Government Tightens Maasai Mara Rules After Viral Tourist Clip

August 26, 2025

Co-op Bank Empowers Over 249,000 Kenyan MSMEs with Loans and Training

August 21, 2025
  • Home
  • African
  • News
  • Education
  • Health
  • Reports & Analysis
  • World Business

© 2025 KBF

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • African
  • News
    • Agribusiness
    • Courts
    • Hospitality
    • Manufacturing
  • Education
  • Health
  • Reports & Analysis
  • World Business

© 2025 KBF