The prices of several commodities, particularly food items, are likely to go up from June this year, a survey conducted by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has revealed.
CBK, in its Agriculture Sector Survey published on Tuesday, June 17, disclosed that most respondents expect the prices of key cereal products and select vegetables to increase significantly from June.
Similarly, most respondents expect the prices of sugar and cooking oil to soar this month, mainly because of the ongoing developments in the global markets where the prices of these products have risen.
"Balance of opinion (BOO) on expected price changes shows prices of key cereal products and select vegetables are expected to increase in June 2025 reflecting seasonal factors," the survey report read in part.
"Respondents expect prices of maize products and related items to be slightly higher in June 2025 relative to May 2025. In addition, respondents expected the prices of sugar, cooking fat and cooking oil to also pick up," it added.
While the prices of most food items were projected to increase, CBK in its survey noted that the prices of some vegetables, such as kale, traditional vegetables, cabbage and spinach, were likely to fall.
According to CBK, the prices of the four vegetables would drop mainly because of favourable rains experienced in most parts of the country between March and May 2025.
Additionally, the Central Bank noted that the proportion of respondents who expect tomato prices to increase declined in May compared to the April 2025 survey.
The regulator further revealed that most respondents expect the country's overall inflation to decrease or remain unchanged in the next month, primarily driven by the generally positive rainfall outcome for the March to May 2025 season.
Other factors that were expected to lower the country's inflation rate over the next month include a favourable exchange rate, with the shilling expected to remain stable against the United States dollar.
The survey also sought respondents’ views on their expectations about the overall performance of the Kenyan economy in terms of economic growth prospects.
The results indicated that optimism remained high, with 67 per cent of the sampled respondents expecting an improvement in the overall economic performance in the next three months.
