PM Focused on Further Reducing Inflation

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says having successfully reduced inflation from 12 to 5.6 per cent over the past three years, his administration is working aggressively to secure a further reduction in the cost of living.

The prime minister was speaking earlier this week during a tour of the Spring Village community in Old Harbour St. Catherine, where a new bridge is to be constructed in the vicinity of a processing plant. 

Chevon Campbell has that story.

The prime minister acknowledged concerns in Jamaica about the cost of living and observed that inflation is a global problem affecting even developed economies.

He says the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine, along with other global disruptions, have caused world prices for global shipping and other logistics to increase significantly. 

He noted that these factors have resulted in wide-ranging price increases in Jamaica and across the globe.

While reasoning that the increase in the cost of living is not the fault of the government, Mr. Holness says his administration continues to respond.

The prime minister explained that his government appreciates the nature of the challenges that face Jamaicans who are affected by price increases.

During his address, Prime Minister Holness also commented that the government understands that investing in infrastructure increases productivity and reduces the overall cost of production, thereby keeping the cost of goods to consumers stable.

He reasoned that increasing output and efficiency can mitigate inflationary pressures in an economy.