Egypt: Inflation comes in at near four-year high in September
Inflation came in at 15.1% in September, which was up from August’s 14.6%, moving further above the upper bound of the Central Bank’s 5.0–9.0% target band—where it has been for the past seven months. September’s figure represented the highest inflation rate since November 2018. Looking at the details of the release, prices for transportation rose at a marginally brisker rate compared to the previous month’s reading, which more than offset prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages increasing at a weaker rate in September.
Accordingly, the trend pointed up, with annual average inflation coming in at 10.6% in September (August: 9.9%). Meanwhile, core inflation rose to 18.0% in September, from August’s 16.7%, marking the highest rate since December 2017.
Finally, consumer prices increased 1.61% over the previous month in September, picking up from the 0.85% rise seen in August. September’s uptick was the sharpest increase in prices since April.