Tanzania’s Headline Inflation Rate Falls Slightly to 4.7% in March 2023, National Bureau of Statistics Reports.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a slight fall in Tanzania’s annual headline inflation rate to 4.7% in March 2023, down from 4.8% in February 2023. The overall index, however, increased from 107.09 in March 2022 to 112.13 in March 2023.

According to the NBS, the slight decrease in the headline inflation rate indicates a small reduction in the speed of price change for commodities in the year ended March 2023 compared to the preceding year.

The food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation rate for March 2023 rose slightly to 9.7%, up from 9.6% recorded in February 2023. Meanwhile, the annual inflation rate for all items without food and non-alcoholic beverages for March 2023 slightly decreased to 2.7% from 2.8% recorded in February 2023.

The National Consumer Price Index between February 2023 and March 2023 increased by 0.8%, attributed to price increases for some food and non-food items. The rise in the index was mainly due to price increases in items such as wheat, rice, sorghum grains, finger millet grains, maize grains, maize flour, bread, poultry, fresh fish, sardines, fruits, groundnuts, vegetables, fresh cassava, dry cassava, and cassava flour.

Non-food items such as footwear for women, charcoal, and petrol also increased the index.