Ghana’s year-on-year inflation rate increased to 5.0% in August 2026 from 4.6% in July, marking a reversal of the previous downward trend as rising non-food and services inflation pushed up the headline rate.
According to data released by the Ghana Statistical Service, overall prices declined by 1.0% between July and August, despite the annual inflation rate rising by 0.4 percentage points.
The contrasting movements in monthly prices and annual inflation reflect changing price pressures in the economy, with non-food items and services driving the increase in August.
Non-food inflation drives August increase
Non-food inflation rose to 6.8% in August from 6.1% in July, contributing significantly to the increase in headline inflation.
Services inflation also edged up from 8.5% to 8.6%, while food inflation continued its downward trend, easing slightly from 3.1% to 3.0%.
The data indicate that easing food prices are helping to contain overall inflation, despite continued pressure from non-food items and services.
Goods and services show divergent trends
Inflation for goods rose to 3.8% in August from 3.4% in July, indicating a renewed increase in the annual pace of price growth.
Inflation for locally produced items also increased to 6.1%, up from 5.9% in July, while imported inflation edged up to 2.2% from 2.0%.
The lower rate of imported inflation suggests that external price pressures remain relatively contained, although global commodity prices and currency movements could still affect the inflation outlook.
Inflation remains well below 2025 levels
Despite the increase in August, Ghana’s inflation rate remains well below the level recorded a year earlier.
The 5.0% inflation rate in August 2026 compares with 11.5% in August 2025, representing a 6.5 percentage-point decline over the 12-month period.
The latest figures therefore point to continued disinflation compared with a year ago, even though the month-on-month increase in the annual rate suggests that the downward trend is not necessarily linear.