Headline inflation was unchanged at 10.6 percent between January and February 2022, remaining above the Bank’s medium-term objective range of 3 - 6 percent, and substantially higher than 2.4 percent in February 2021. According to Statistics Botswana, the constant inflation between January and February 2022 mainly reflects offsetting movements in the annual price changes for most categories of goods and services. Inflation remained stable for Communication (1.2 percent). The inflationary pressure was further eased by inflation falling for: Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels (from 8.1 to 7.8 percent); Recreation and Culture (from 4 to 3.7 percent); Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages (from 7 to 6.8 percent); Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (from 9.7 to 9.6 percent); Clothing and Footwear (from 4 to 3.9 percent); and Restaurants and Hotels (from 5 to 4.9 percent). However, the downward pressure on inflation was partly offset by inflation increasing with respect to: Transport (from 26.7 to 27 percent); Miscellaneous Goods and Services (from 7.7 to 8 percent); Furnishing, Household Equipment and Routine Maintenance (from 5.2 to 5.4 percent); Health (from 2.6 to 2.7 percent); and Education (from 2.2 to 2.3 percent).
Similarly, the 16 percent trimmed mean inflation remained constant at 8.8 percent between January and February 2022, while inflation excluding administered prices increased marginally from 6.7 percent to 6.8 percent, in the same period.