Zambia Inflation Cools as Fuel Tax Cuts Blunt War Shock

Zambia’s annual inflation slowed to a more than eight-year low in April as government measures to cushion consumers blunted the impact of surging energy costs driven by the war in Iran.

Consumer prices rose 6.8% this month compared with 7.1% in March, Statistician-General Sheila Mudenda told reporters in Lusaka, the capital, on Thursday. Prices rose 0.7% in the month.

The US-Israel war on Iran that began Feb. 28 has led to a surge in food, fertilizer and energy costs because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a transit point for at least a ...