Egypt Inflation Rate Slows in January

Egypt annual inflation eased to 9.7 percent in January of 2015 from 10.1 percent in the previous month. A year ago, the inflation rate was recorded at 11.36 percent.
Carolina Cunha | carolina.cunha@tradingeconomics.com 2/16/2015 12:36:23 PM
Comparing January 2015 with the same month of the previous year, cost of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose at a slower 5.8 percent, following an 8.4 percent increase in December. Fruits and vegetables prices increased 6.73 percent, down from 13.2 percent in the previous month.

Education cost went up 24.68 percent and transport prices jumped 22.03 percent. Additional upward pressure came from hotels and restaurants (15.08 percent), medical care (14.23 percent); housing, water, electricity and gas (9.32 percent) and clothing and footwear (2.53 percent). 

Year-on-year, core inflation eased for the fifth consecutive month to 7.06 percent from 7.69 percent in the previous period.

On a monthly basis, prices advanced 0.99 percent, following a 0.07 fall in December, as a result of a 3.3 increase in cost of housing, water, electricity and gas and a 0.99 percent increase in food prices. 

Consumer prices rose sharply after the government cut energy subsidies in July of 2014, reaching an eleven-month high 11.8 percent in October. Since then, inflation has been on a downward trend due to a slowdown in food cost. As a result, the Central Bank of Egypt cut its benchmark overnight deposit rate by 50bps to 8.75 percent on January 15th.

Egypt Inflation Rate Slows in January