HGP Nightly News – According to the Government’s 2026 Mid-Year Report, consumer prices increased by 4.4 per cent between December 2025 and June 2026, with food prices rising by 6.7 per cent.
The figures provide a different measure of Guyana’s economic performance from the headline 33.3 per cent growth recorded during the first six months of the year. While the economy expanded sharply, largely because of increased oil production, the report shows that households and several productive sectors continued to face significant pressures.
The Government attributed the increase in prices to imported inflation, stronger demand for food, retail markups and unfavourable weather.
Agriculture, forestry and fishing contracted by 0.5 per cent during the period, with adverse weather among the factors affecting production. The “other crops” subsector declined by 6.4 per cent after prolonged rainfall left farms waterlogged, damaged crops and reduced yields.
Marine fish production fell by 4.1 per cent, while sugar production was affected by heavy rainfall, labour shortages and poor cane quality.
There were also setbacks elsewhere in the productive economy. Manganese production fell by 27.5 per cent, diamond declarations dropped by 61.7 per cent and rice manufacturing contracted by 2.7 per cent.
Against those pressures, the economy as a whole expanded by an estimated 33.3 per cent during the first half of 2026, with increased oil production providing much of the momentum.
But the Mid-Year Report shows that rapid growth has not eliminated financial pressures.
Guyana recorded a US$293.9 million balance-of-payments deficit during the first half of the year, which was financed through a drawdown of foreign reserves at the Bank of Guyana.
The non-financial public sector also recorded a G$108.9 billion deficit, while public enterprises posted a G$3.2 billion deficit.
The report pointed to increased expenditure in areas including fuel acquisition at Guyoil and power-generation costs at Guyana Power and Light.
Public debt remains another area of exposure. Total public and publicly guaranteed debt stood at US$8.573 billion at the end of June.
The Government’s report identified exchange-rate and interest-rate movements as risks, noting that 38.6 per cent of the debt portfolio was denominated in foreign currency. The domestic debt portfolio is also exposed to interest-rate changes because of the country’s reliance on short-term Treasury bills.
The economic expansion is creating a further challenge: finding enough workers to keep up with demand.
The report says labour demand has outpaced existing supply, particularly for workers with technical and professional skills. The shortage could delay major infrastructure and development projects, increase project costs and reduce productive capacity.
The Government also expects demand for labour to remain ahead of supply in the near term. It says it is monitoring wage pressures while seeking to expand training and attract Guyanese from the diaspora as well as non-nationals.
Weather could add another layer of uncertainty.
All ten regions recorded significantly wetter conditions than historical averages during the first half of the year, with flooding affecting agriculture, other economic activities and civil works.
The report, however, warns that Guyana could face the opposite problem later in the year as El Niño brings the possibility of below-normal rainfall and prolonged dry spells.
Such conditions could lead to water shortages, crop failures, livestock losses and heat stress.
Guyana is also exposed to developments beyond its borders, including geopolitical tensions, supply-chain disruptions and fluctuations in international commodity prices. During the first half of the year, sugar prices fell by 19.2 per cent, rice prices by 2.7 per cent and logs by 6.2 per cent.
The result is an economy displaying two realities at the same time.
On one side, Guyana is recording extraordinary growth, driven largely by its expanding oil sector. On the other, the Government’s own figures show that food prices are rising, some traditional sectors are contracting, public and external deficits remain substantial, businesses face labour shortages and the economy remains vulnerable to weather and global market shocks.
For consumers, however, the 6.7 per cent increase in food prices may be one of the more immediate figures in the report.
The Mid-Year Report therefore suggests that the challenge for the remainder of 2026 is not simply maintaining Guyana’s rapid economic expansion, but managing the inflationary, fiscal, labour and climate pressures accompanying it — and ensuring that the country’s exceptional growth translates into tangible economic relief for households.
