Ghana July producer price inflation at 47.4 pct yr/yr -stats office

ACCRA (Reuters) - Ghana's annual producer price inflation stood at 47.4 percent year-on-year in July up from the last estimate for June of 33.1 percent, the national statistics office said on Wednesday. The rise, driven partly by increased costs in the manufacturing sector, takes Ghana's producer price inflation to its highest level since January 2010. "All the sub-sectors have recorded increases but the main driver is the manufacturing sector, which constitutes more than two-thirds of total industry," said government statistician Philomena Nyarko. Prices in that sector rose 13.2 percentage points, she said. Producer price inflation is an advance indicator of consumer price inflation, which rose to a four-year high of 15.3 percent in July, driven partly by a depreciation of the local cedi currency. Politically-stable Ghana has seen years of rapid gross domestic product growth, making it one of Africa's economic stars. But the government faces fiscal problems that could pose a threat to growth including inflation, the falling currency and a stubborn budget deficit. President John Mahama ordered his government this month to open talks with the International Monetary Fund on a programme to help stabilise the economy and stabilize the cedi.