The country’s food inflation dropped in January this year, continuing a positive trend from December 2024.
The latest data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) shows that food inflation decreased by 2.2 percentage points, reaching 10.72%. In December, food inflation stood at 12.92%, and in November, it was 13.8%.
However, non-food inflation has increased slightly to 9.32% in January from 9.26% in December.
The decline in food inflation has contributed to an overall reduction in inflation by 0.95 percentage points, bringing it down to 9.94% in January. In December, the inflation rate was 10.89%, while it was 9.86% in January last year.
In 2024, Bangladesh grappled with soaring inflation, averaging 10.33%, far outpacing the 7.94% wage growth. Over the past three years, inflation has consistently risen at double the rate of wages. In 2023, inflation reached 9.55%, while wages increased by just 7.43%.
Data from the BBS highlights this growing disparity. In 2021, inflation was 5.54% against a 6.07% wage growth. By 2024, food inflation alone surged to 14.10%, marking a 16-year high and making it one of the toughest for consumers.
While the official inflation rate initially seemed below 10%, new data revealed it had climbed to 11.66% by July 2024.
bd-pratidin/GR
