Mind the rising crude oil prices

Market dynamics: Higher oil prices, along with the increased cost of imported and local raw materials, will put pressure on producer and consumer prices.

GLOBALLY, prices of commodities like oil, food and base metals, as well as raw materials, have rebounded strongly from the low in 2020 on the back of positive news about the Covid-19 vaccine trials and mass vaccination programmes.

The World Bank reported that between April 2020 and February 2021, food prices have gone up by 33.4%, raw materials such as timber and rubber rose by 18.9%, while metals and minerals increased by 62.5%.