Egypt’s annual inflation rate has rose to 4.8% on an annual basis during March, compared to 4.6% in March last year.
The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) said that inflation rate in Egypt rose by 0.2%.
The agency stated that the consumer price index in Egypt reached 110.9 points in last March, up 0.6% from the previous month.
Egypt’s inflation rate
CAPMAS attributed the monthly increase in inflation to the high prices of fruit group by 7.1%, meat and poultry group by 3.7%, oils and fats group by 0.9%, vegetable group 0.7%, cereals and bread group 0.5%, and dairy, cheese and eggs group by 0.5%.
On the other hand the prices of the readymade garments group by decreased by 1.1% and the transportation services group by 0.4%.
The agency pointed out that the cost of alcoholic beverages and smoke rose on an annual basis over the past month by 6.6%, culture and entertainment by 3.6%, and furniture, household equipment and equipment and maintenance by 2.6%.
CAPMAS pointed out that the cost of housing, water, electricity, gas and fuel increased on an annual basis during last March by 4.9%, various goods and services by 8.9%, and clothes and shoes by 1.3%, while the cost of wired and wireless communications decreased by 0.2%.
Swinging rate
The monthly inflation rate in Egypt fluctuates between high and low. While in February it rose by 0.1%, it was down in January by 0.4%, compared to December 2020, which was declining by 0.5%, while it was up by 1.1% in November it was also up in October by 2.3%.
But in general, the inflation index ended 2020 with a noticeable decline. The general average for inflation 2020 recorded 5.1%, compared to 8.5% in the previous year.
The central agency also said that urban consumer price inflation stabilized at 4.5% year on year last March.
In a related context, the Research Department at HC Securities and Investment expected that Central Bank of Egypt to keep interest rates unchanged at its meeting scheduled for the end of this week.
