CAIRO: The Egyptian urban inflation rate increased in the year to December, but the rate of increase is unlikely to prompt the central bank to raise interest rates this month to curb price growth. According to a report issued by Egypt's state statistics agency CAPMAS posted on its website on Monday, urban consumer inflation rose up to 10.3 percent in the 12 months preceding December. Consumer inflation rose 10.2 percent leading up to November. Prices of food and beverages, which account for 44 percent of the measure of inflation, accelerated year-on-year to 17.2 percent in December from 17.1 percent in November. Record high food prices could hit Egypt, a major food importer relying on imports for at least 50 percent of domestic consumption, as global food prices rise as a result of erratic global weather patterns. The United Nations' food agency, FAO, said last week that food prices hit a record high in December, topping 2008 levels when riots broke out in various countries. Egypt's core annual inflation, which strips out subsidized goods and volatile items including fruit and vegetable prices, accelerated to 9.65 percent in the year to December. It jumped to its highest rate since April 2009 when it reached 10.3 percent. Prices fell 0.7 percent on a monthly basis in December, the statistics agency said. The costs of food and beverages fell 1.9 percent, it said. BM
