Some regions face higher inflation than national average – GNCCI CEO

Some regions are recording inflation above the national average, despite easing price pressures overall, the CEO of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) said.

Mark Badu-Aboagye said the national rate of 5.5 per cent does not reflect every region’s experience.

Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, he acknowledged the differences but said inflation had broadly been stable.

“There are outliers. Some may have higher inflation, even in the regional context. Some regions even have inflation that is higher than the national average.”

His comments followed a challenge from the host about whether easing inflation matched consumers’ experiences. The host questioned whether different shopping baskets would produce different assessments of price pressures.

“No, so that's why we use the average. So the national average is 5.5 per cent,” Mr Badu-Aboagye responded.

He attributed the broader stability partly to the exchange rate and production costs.

“If you are talking about inflation of 5.5%, a number of factors, as I said, the stable exchange rate contributed significantly, and then also the cost of production as well.”

But he cautioned that rising inflation for locally manufactured goods showed businesses still faced pressure.

“If you look at the numbers, the cost of locally manufactured goods, the inflation for it went up a bit, which should tell you that we are still not out of the woods yet.”

Mr Badu-Aboagye said business conditions had improved compared with previous years. He described the 2026 budget as largely business-friendly, citing tax relief for businesses and consumers, alongside falling interest rates.

“So largely, the cost of production is relatively better. It could have been better in a way.”

He also linked single-digit inflation partly to businesses holding back excessive price increases. However, his assessment of locally manufactured goods underscored the pressures that remain beneath the national average.