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Kenya’s inflation slowed slightly to 6.6 per cent year on year in December, down from 6.8 per cent in November, remaining within the central bank’s preferred range of 2.5 to 7.5 per cent, the statistics office said on Friday.

However, the inflation rate which measures the average change in prices of goods and services consumed by households, remained high due to an increase prices of commodities such as transport, housing, water, electricity, fuel and food.

According to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), transport index increased by 11.7 per cent in the last 12 months, mainly due to the higher fuel prices and public transport fares. The housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels increased by 8.3 per cent in the same period while food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by 7.7 per cent between December 2022 and December 2023,” the Bureau said.
t said the three divisions that determined the change in the inflation rate account for 57 per cent of the weights of the 13 broad categories.

The other categories include alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics which accounted for 8.5 per cent in the period under review, clothing and footwear (3.0pc), furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance (3.5pc), health (2.8pc), and information and communication (1.2pc).

Recreation, sports and culture had 5.1 per cent increase, education services (1.9pc), restaurant and acommodation services (3.8pc), insurance and financial services (0.8pc) and personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services (6.3pc).

Last month, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) increased the CBK rate to 12.5 per cent from 10.5 per cent as the country strives to tame high inflation that closed November at 6.8 per cent. This increase pushed the base lending rate to levels last witnessed in the early 1990s and was the highest increase in five years. ”This will ensure that inflationary expectations remain anchored while setting inflation on a firm downward path towards the 5.0 per cent mid-point of the target range,’’ CBK said.

Interest rates in Kenya averaged 12.98 per cent from 1991, reaching an all-time high of 84.67 per cent in July 1993 and a record low of 0.83 per cent in September of 2003.