Egypt’s inflation rises again in March reaching highest level in 6 years
Egypt’s annual urban inflation rose to its highest level during March mostly on the back of soaring food prices linked to the decline in the value of the local currency, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Monday.
Egyptian annual headline inflation rate surged to 33.9 percent in March 2023, up from 12.1 percent in March 2022, CAPMAS reported.
The surge in inflation resulted from a 62.7 percent year-on-year (YoY) jump in the prices of food and beverages.
On a monthly basis, prices grew 2.7 per cent in March, compared with 6.5 per cent in the previous month. The slower pace of increase is partially statistical because declines in the currency a year ago created a high base of comparison.
The latest annual inflation figure is narrowly below the all-time high of 32.952 per cent in July 2017, less than a year after Egypt devalued its currency by half as part of a $12 billion support package offered by the International Monetary Fund.
Egypt has devalued its currency three times since last March, slicing the pound’s value by nearly 50 per cent.
But a persistent shortage of foreign currency and the subsequent delays in getting imports into the country have continued to play havoc with the economy, placing the pound under continuing pressure.
