Economy grows 5.9pc as December inflation cools to 6.6pc

Kenya’s economy has registered a 5.9pc growth in the third quarter of the year to September.

The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) says this was an improvement when compared to 4.3pc real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) recorded in over the same period last year.

The growth was mainly supported by a rebound in agricultural activities that had contracted in the previous year.

During the review quarter, Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing activities’ Gross Value Added rose by 6.7pc compared to a contraction of 1.3pc in the third quarter of 2022.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics this is attributed to favourable weather conditions that characterized the better part of 2023.

In addition, the growth was also buoyed by significant growths in Financial and Insurance sectors at 14.7pc, Information and Communication 7.3pc and Accommodation & Food Service 26pc activities driven by the increase in the number of visitor arrivals in the country.

This comes even as overall year on year inflation rate as measured by the Consumer Price Index dropped by 0.6pc to 6.6 per cent in December 2023.

KNBS says prices of carrots, kale “Sukuma-wiki,” mutton/goat meat, and beef with bones saw increases of 14.5pc, 6.2pc, 5.1pc, and 3.6pc, respectively, while mangoes, potatoes, sifted maize flour, and fortified maize flour experienced declines.

However, despite a drop in petrol and diesel prices, the Transport Index rose by 0.5pc, attributed to country bus fare increases on certain routes.