Accra, Feb. 25, GNA - The Annual Producer Price Index (PPI) inches u= p 0.68 per cent to 189.61 in January. The corresponding rate in December wa= s 188.32. This brings the respective yearly change between January 2009 and January 2010 to 25.57 per cent, representing a decline of 2.14 percentage=

points. Mr. Magnus Ebo Duncan, Head of Economics and Statistics at Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), who announced the figures at a press conferenc= e in Accra on Wednesday, said the PPI for January 2010, was higher than tha= t of 2009 in all industry average, but was smaller than December. On specific industry basis, the mining and quarrying sector which controls 13.97 per cent shares of all industry, recorded the highest inflation rate of 41.40 per cent as against 28.84 per cent rate by the manufacturing sector which controls 69.75 per cent of all industry share. The utilities sector recorded the least figure closing at 0.66 per cent. Mr. Duncan said the relatively stable nature of the utilities sector=

accounted for its recording of the least inflation rate.