CAIRO (XINHUA) – Egypt’s annual inflation continued its rise in January, hitting 26.5 per cent, the highest since the end of 2017, the country’s official statistic agency announced on Thursday. The annual inflation rate was eight per cent in the same month in 2022, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) in a statement.
Among the drivers behind the spike in the annual inflation, the prices of food and beverages increased by 48.1 per cent, water, electricity, and fuel by 7.2 per cent, furniture by 28.2 per cent, healthcare service by 15.1 per cent, transportation by 18.5 per cent, entertainment by 30.6 per cent, and hotels and restaurants by 42.8 per cent, it said.
It added the annual urban inflation in January 2023 compared to December 2022 jumped by 4.9 per cent.
According to Egyptian economist Adel Amer, “the increase of the annual inflation rate is caused by the country’s economic crisis driven mainly by global economic problems, local low production and the devaluation of local currency”.
Over the past year, the Egyptian currency has depreciated by nearly 50 per cent with an official rate of the pound against the dollar now standing at 30.3, according to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE).
