Egypt: Inflation comes in at three-year high in May
Consumer prices increased 1.03% in May over the previous month, which was a sharp moderation from April’s 3.26% rise. May’s result marked the weakest reading since January. The slowdown was primarily due to a softer rise in prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages. In addition, price pressures for transportation moderated. The reading was partly reflective of the ending of the Holy month of Ramadan and the holidays.
Inflation continued its upward trend in May, coming in at 13.5%, which was up from April’s 13.1%, thus coming in further above the upper bound of the Central Bank’s 5.0–9.0% target band for a third consecutive month. May’s figure marked the highest inflation rate since May 2019. Consequently, annual average inflation rose to 7.8% in May (April: 7.1%). Lastly, core inflation rose to 13.3% in May, from the previous month’s 11.9%.