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Planning Minister MA Mannan yesterday claimed that inflation in Bangladesh has come down notably although the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) was yet to publish the consumer price index for August and September.
The consumer price index measures change over time in the prices paid by consumers for a representative basket of goods and services.
Inflation rose in August and came down visibly in September by a large extent, he said at a programme in Dhaka.
In July, inflation, a measure of changes in prices of a basket of commodities, fell to 7.48 per cent from a nine-year high of 7.56 per cent in June, thanks to a fall in food inflation, according to the BBS.
The figures for August and September have not been published yet.
However, Mannan signalled in early September that inflation would be high in August and September owing to a hike in the cost of living and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
According to a planning ministry official, in August, the overall inflation rate was near 10 per cent and food inflation even more.
Usually, the BBS publishes inflation figures of a month in the first week of the subsequent month. This time, the agency is yet to publish consumer prices data for August although the subsequent month has passed.
“We do completely believe in transparency. We are always ready to respond to any queries with honestly. If we do not release any data timely, we may take time but it will not mislead or be engineered,” said Mannan.
At the event, Mannan gave the credit to the government’s strategic measures or initiatives for the inflation being reined in. At the same time, he claimed that inflation would come down further in the coming months.
“Inflation has come down due to the distribution of essential commodities among one crore families at low prices through the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh across the country. Through this, at least four crore people got the benefits directly,” he said.
Mannan’s claim of a fall in inflation in September is in stark contrast to global inflation, which is running high amidst rising commodity costs and an energy crisis stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war.
Inflation in the 19-member eurozone surged to 10 per cent in September, the highest on record, owing to soaring electricity and natural gas prices.
In the US, consumer price index rose 8.3 per cent in August from the same month a year ago.
The minister made the remarks at the inauguration ceremony of a training programme on “Post Enumeration Check of the Population and Housing Census-2022” organised by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).
However, he did not mention any figure of inflation in the past months.
Besides, the BIDS announced at the event that they would conduct the post enumeration check of the recently published preliminary results of the latest population and housing census 2022 conducted by the BBS on October 10-16.
BIDS Director General Dr Binayak Sen chaired the event while State Minister for Planning Shamsul Alam was present as the guest of honour.
Among others, Planning Commission Secretary Md Mamun-Al-Rashid, Statistics and Information Division Secretary Shahnaz Arefin, BBS DG Md Matiar Rahman also spoke at the event.
(TDS)
