GSS Urges Gov’t to Use Sub-Sector Data for Inflation Control and Industry Policies

While recent data shows producer price inflation is easing, the uneven nature of price movements across sectors highlights a more complex reality, one that demands nuanced policy action rather than broad economic responses. 

In this context, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) is urging the government to make greater use of detailed sub-sector data to guide inflation management, trade strategy, and industrial policy. The call follows the release of the May 2025 Producer Price Index (PPI), which reflects a continued downward trend in production-level inflation and presents what the GSS describes as a critical window for smart, data-driven intervention.

The latest figures reveal that year-on-year producer price inflation dropped to 10.2 percent in May, a sharp decline from the 18.5 percent recorded in April. This marks the fourth consecutive monthly decline and positions May as the lowest PPI level since November 2023, when the rate stood at just 1.7 percent.

On a month-to-month basis, producer prices fell by 4.2 percent between April and May, confirming broad-based deflationary trends in what producers earn at the factory gate for goods and services.

While this signals a welcome shift in input costs, the GSS is cautioning that such data must be used more strategically. It recommends that policy actions be tailored to sector-specific realities rather than broad aggregates. The sub-sector breakdown offers important clues as to where interventions are most urgently needed and which areas are driving or softening inflation. 

Mining and quarrying posted the highest year-on-year inflation at 13.7 percent, followed closely by manufacturing at 10.1 percent and electricity and gas at 8.9 percent. Construction and accommodation and food services also recorded annual price increases of 7.4 percent and 6.5 percent respectively. Transportation and storage experienced a 4.8 percent decline, marking it as the only sub-sector with annual price deflation.

Month-on-month inflation patterns were even more telling. Between April and May 2025, transportation and storage saw the steepest price drop at 13.5 percent. Accommodation and food services followed with a decline of 9.2 percent, while both mining and manufacturing recorded price decreases of 4.8 percent each. Even the overall index showed a monthly fall of 4.2 percent. These changes contrast sharply with the electricity and gas sector, which was the only major category to record a significant price increase of 4.6 percent over the same period.

The decline in prices for key production inputs like mining and manufacturing, which together accounted for 78.7 percent of the overall decline in producer inflation, suggests that government policies must be adjusted to reflect the distinct dynamics within those sectors. A generic approach may risk missing the specific bottlenecks or gains occurring across industry segments.

In addition to technical policy shifts, the GSS recommends a deeper focus on public education. It believes the public should be better informed about what producer price inflation means, how it is calculated, and how it affects the cost of living. Transparency in economic communication, the agency suggests, is crucial to building national confidence in the direction of the economy.

Read More