Malawi inflation pushes up to 7.7 pct y/y

Malawi's inflation jumped to 7.7 percent year-on-year in January, from 7.5 percent in December, the National Statistical Office (NSO) said on Thursday.

The NSO said in a statement higher fuel prices were the main driver of the rise of inflation in January. Fuel prices rose by 17 percent in September and 5 percent last month and Malawi is a net importer of oil.

"The current rise in inflation is due mainly to the recent upward adjustments in the price of gasoline and its derivatives and seasonal pressure on cereals and cereal products," it said.

It said the shortage of maize had also contributed to a rise in inflation, in a country where the food index makes up 58.1 percent of the consumer price index.

Malawi harvested 3.1 million tonnes of maize in the last planting season -- its biggest in 10 years. The government exported 400,000 tonnes to hunger stricken Zimbabwe.

But despite having a bumper crop, government is rationing maize sales to deal with the dwindling stocks in its markets.

Most parts of Malawi usually start suffering from maize shortages between December and March when most households have exhausted their previous harvest.