CPI and rates of inflation for November 2017

Kenya National Bureau of Statistics hereby releases monthly Consumer Price Indices (CPI) and rates of inflation, for November 2017. These numbers were generated by conducting a survey of retail prices for a basket of household consumption goods and services, during the second and third weeks of the month under review. The prices were obtained from selected retail outlets in 25 data collection zones spread across Nairobi and 13 other urban centers.

The CPI decreased by 0.23 per cent from 182.50 in October to 182.08 in November 2017. The overall year on year inflation stood at 4.73 per cent in November 2017.

2017 AFRICAN STATISTICS DAY CELEBRATIONS

Kenya, through the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics is joining other African nations to celebrate the African Statistics Day on 17th November 2017. This day is celebrated each year in Africa on18 November 2017, to raise public awareness of the importance of statistics in all aspects of social and economic life.

The theme of the Day this year is “Better lives with better economic statistics” and focuses on the critical role economic statistics plays in underpinning economic governance that leads to durable growth, and linking economic growth with better lives and better economic status for all citizens of Africa.

Availability and appropriate use of good economic statistics can translate into better lives for people through providing evidence as a base for policy and decision-making by the nation or by firms, households, and citizens. Statistics provide information for monitoring, evaluation, and reporting of the progress in meeting the goals and targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), as well as a basis for effective economic governance to promote the welfare of a nation.

The importance of statistics in understanding and using economic information for planning and policy design cannot be overstressed. All key macroeconomic variables (national accounts, savings and investment, employment interest rates, inflation) and microeconomic (poverty, inequality, social outcome indicators, etc.) are based on statistics. For example, national accounts that measure the overall size and strength of the economy, as well as trends in production, consumption, investment, and savings amongst other variables or indicators. Income and wealth of the economy are the bases of the well-being of the individuals and households. When the economy is strong, there will be more opportunities for jobs and employment. Increased employment will elevate more people out of poverty, and increase productivity as well.

Government provides public goods and services to citizens and intervene and influence the economy through fiscal policy. Government finance statistics show the amount and sources of government financial resources and how these resources are spent. A positive impact from public finance (revenues and spending) on the economy can return high growth in the economy, which brings in more tax revenues. Good government financial statistics help improve the transparency and good governance of the economy, and thus better the well-being of the people.

 

Leading Economic Indicator September 2017

The Leading Economic Indicators highlights trends in Consumer Price Indices (CPI) and inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, international trade, agriculture, energy, manufacturing, building and construction, tourism and transport.

Consumer Price Index (CPI) decreased from 184.72 points in August 2017 to 183.66 points in September 2017. The overall rate of inflation dropped from 8.04 per cent to 7.06 per cent during
the same period. In August 2017, the Kenyan Shilling appreciated against the major trading currencies except for the Euro, South African Rand, the Euro, and the Sterling Pound.

The average yield rate for the 91-day Treasury bills, which is a benchmark for the general trend of interest rates, decreased from 8.22 per cent in July 2017 to 8.19 per cent in August 2017 while the inter-bank rate rose from 6.84 per cent in July 2017to 8.12 per cent in August 2017.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) 20 share index decreased from 4,027 points in August 2017 to 3,751 points in September 2017, while the total number of shares traded dropped from 640 million shares to 557 million shares during the same period. The total value of NSE shares traded increased from KSh 16.0 billion in August 2017 to KSh 16.2 billion in September 2017.

Broad money supply (M3), a key indicator for monetary policy formulation, increased from KSh 2,957.94 billion in July 2017 to KSh 2,966.59 billion in August 2017. Gross Foreign Exchange Reserves expanded from KSh 1,075.90 billion in August 2017 to KSh 1,085.54 billion in September 2017. Net Foreign Exchange Reserves increased from KSh 609.02 billion in July 2017 to KSh 617.64 billion in September 2017. 

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