.webp)
The inflation rate in Bangladesh fell slightly to 9.49 per cent in November from 9.93 per cent in October thanks to the decline in food and non-food prices, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) data.
The rate was 9.93 per cent in October which was the second highest in a month this year.
The data showed that food inflation slipped to 10.76 per cent in November from 12.56 per cent in October while non-food inflation dropped to 8.16 per cent in November from 8.30 per cent in October.
Zahid Hussain, former lead economist at the World Bank's Dhaka office, thinks that the decline in food inflation is basically a supply drive deduction. Rice production was higher this year and there were no major floods or pest attacks during the cropping season as well.
The second thing was government’s initiative to import essentials like eggs, edible oil, and onions which showed an upward trend in prices. The initiative has helped reining in the prices, he said.
In the year-to-year comparison, the inflation rate is still high. It was 8.85 per cent in November last year while food inflation was 8.14 per cent. But non-food inflation was 9.98 per cent in November last year.
In November this year, rural people saw a drop in inflation from 9.99 per cent to 9.62 per cent. They needed to spend less on food as inflation dropped from 12.53 per cent to 10.86 per cent comparing to the month of October.
For non-food items, they saw a little drop from 8.01 per cent to 8.00 per cent.
In urban areas, overall inflation dropped from 9.72 per cent to 9.16 per cent. For food items, they also saw a significant drop from 12.58 per cent to 10.58 per cent. Non-food inflation dropped slightly from 8.50 per cent to 8.17 per cent, according to the BBS data.
The country has been facing significant inflationary pressure since the last fiscal year, primarily attributed to Russia-Ukraine war which led to soaring global prices, as well as USD crisis in the country. Although global prices have now become stable, Bangladesh is still struggling to control inflation.
“The reasons for declining inflation rates on non-food items are mixed. You can see, for the health sector, it is deflation, dropped from -1.73 per cent to -3.83 per cent. I think if this did not happen, overall non-food inflation could not drop,” Zahid Hussain said.
The economist also said that the reason for deflation in health sector should be studied further as the prices of medicines or medical services have not decreased in recent times.
The government has set a target of keeping inflation at 6 per cent in the budget for FY2023-24 but it is yet to put any major impact on inflation. Economists have been advising Bangladesh Bank to take initiatives to tame inflation first and bring stability to the economy.
The inflation showed a downward trend in June and July this year. However, it rose to 9.92 per cent in August.
