‘We are still not out of the woods yet’ – GNCCI CEO on local goods inflation

Ghana’s single-digit inflation offers some comfort. But rising inflation in locally manufactured goods shows pressure on businesses has not eased enough, Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) CEO Mark Badu-Aboagye warned.

Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, he said business conditions had improved. Yet the rise in inflation for local goods showed the recovery remained incomplete.

“If you look at the numbers, the cost of locally manufactured goods, the inflation for it went up a bit, which should tell you that we are still not out of the woods yet.”

His caution came alongside a broadly positive assessment of the business environment. He described the 2026 budget as largely business-friendly. Tax relief had helped businesses and consumers, while falling interest rates had eased production costs.

“Relatively, business has been good. Things are a bit better as compared to previous years.”

He said businesses had also contributed to single-digit inflation by limiting price increases.

“So if you see inflation at a single digit, among other factors, the fact that businesses have not been increasing their prices excessively.”

The host challenged that assessment. He questioned whether the headline figure reflected different spending baskets among consumers.

Mr Badu-Aboagye pointed to the national average of 5.5 per cent. He acknowledged that some regions recorded higher inflation.

“There are outliers. Some may have a higher inflation, even in the regional context.”

He identified exchange rate stability as a significant contributor to lower inflation. Production costs had also played a role.

However, he argued that additional tariff relief, alongside the tax measures, could have brought down the cost of locally manufactured goods.

“Inflation would have been a bit lower,” he said.