ANNUAL inflation eased to 6,2% in February, edging back from 6,6% the month before, the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) said yesterday.

The main driver of inflation was hotels, cafes and restaurants which recorded an annual rate of 9,7% compared to 8,9% in January. According to NSA chief statistician Aloysius Tsheehama, the high rate was the result of food inflation trickling through to the hospitality sector.

Annual food inflation for February stood at 7,6% - slightly lower than the 8% recorded in January.

Within the food group, three food sub-groups registered double-digit annual inflation: fruit (15,7%), vegetables (14,4%), and oils and fats (12%).

Other groups with high annual inflation were housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (8,5%), alcoholic beverages and tobacco (8,1%), as well as furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance (7%).

Annual transport inflation for February was 5,1%, down from 6,4% the previous month.

The groups with the lowest annual inflation rate for last month were clothing and footwear (2%) and communications (2,3%).

Month-on-month, inflation dropped from 1,6% in January to 0,4% in February.