Monthly inflation nearly doubles , annual rate hits 11.5%

Egypt’s monthly inflation rate rose to 2.7% in February, up from 1.5% in January, driven by higher food and education prices. Annual inflation also climbed to 11.5%, up from 10.1% in January, according to a statement from the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Tuesday.

Food prices were a key driver, with meat and poultry prices rising 9% and vegetable prices up 3.8%, CAPMAS said, in line with the Ramadan season, when demand for food typically increases.

Education costs also rose sharply, including a 22.0% rise in pre-primary and basic education, a 15.3% increase in general secondary and technical education, a 17.0% rise in higher education, and a 12.2% increase in newspapers, books, and school supplies. But inflationary pressures are expected to build again as the Egyptian pound weakens against the US dollar, which was trading at 51.78 on Tuesday morning, having risen from below 49 pounds before the start of the Iran war. Food prices have also risen, pushing up meat prices, alongside increases in various energy items amid the fallout from the current US-Israeli war on Iran.