CAIRO: Cost of living in Egypt continues to rise. The country's official statistics body, CAPMAS, released new data on Saturday that showed inflation rates continue to rise and increased food prices are a main culprit. As food prices rose in November, so did the overall inflation acceleration during the month, which also bore witness to the first central bank interest rate hike in three years. Annual inflation rates in urban parts of Egypt, the gauge that the central bank monitors, rose to 9.1 percent from 7.1 percent in October, according to the statistics posted on CAPMAS's website on Saturday. According to the numbers, food and beverage costs, the largest component in the consumer price index, increased an annual 11.6 percent in November, compared with 8.7 percent a month earlier, the data showed. Many fear that the spiralling food prices hikes that have seen everyday goods continue to steadily increase could have adverse affects on the population as a whole. “We are very worried that the continued higher prices of goods for families will lead to widespread anger and could result in protests that would further confound the political and economic situation,” said Anwar el-Saad, an economist with a local thinktank. He told Bikyamasr.com that food prices “must be stabilized throughout the coming transitional period so Egypt can maintain its base and push forward on all strategies, both politically and economically.” BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/cVq6d Tags: Economy, Inflation, Statistics Section: Business, Egypt, Food, Latest News
