Bangladesh’s inflation rate eased for the fifth consecutive month in April, offering cautious optimism despite the fact that price pressures remain stubbornly high, according to the latest figures from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

The BBS, in its update on the consumer price index released on Monday, reported that the general point-to-point inflation rate fell slightly to 9.17 per cent in April 2025, down from 9.35 per cent in March.

This continued a steady downward trend since December 2024, when inflation began to retreat from the 11.38 per cent peak recorded in November.

The latest data showed that the slowdown was largely driven by declines in both food and non-food inflation.

In April, food inflation eased to 8.63 per cent from 8.93 per cent in March, while non-food inflation slipped to 9.61 per cent from 9.70 per cent over the same period.

The BBS figures revealed notable differences between urban and rural inflation patterns.

Urban areas saw an overall inflation rate of 9.59 per cent in April, slightly down from 9.66 per cent in March.

Within urban centres, food inflation eased marginally to 9.13 per cent from 9.18 per cent, and non-food inflation dipped to 9.88 per cent from 9.95 per cent.

In rural areas, the overall inflation rate in April stood at 9.15 per cent, down from 9.41 per cent a month earlier.

Food inflation in rural regions fell to 8.40 per cent from 8.81 per cent in March, while non-food inflation dropped to 9.86 per cent from 9.97 per cent.

Looking at longer-term trends, the 12-month average inflation rate between May 2024 and April 2025 was calculated at 10.21 per cent, slightly lower than the 10.26 per cent recorded between April 2024 and March 2025.

However, this remained well above the 9.73 per cent average recorded over the prior year, underscoring the persistence of inflationary pressures despite recent improvements.

The report also highlighted a modest uptick in wage growth. The wage rate index rose to 8.19 per cent in April, up slightly from 8.15 per cent in March, indicating some positive movement for workers’ earnings in the face of high living costs.