Saudi Arabia's annual inflation rate inched up to 1.6% in August, from 1.5% in July, government data showed on Sunday, driven by an increase in housing rents and food prices.
On a month-on-month basis, prices increased 0.1% in August © Mena Today
Saudi Arabia's annual inflation rate inched up to 1.6% in August, from 1.5% in July, government data showed on Sunday, driven by an increase in housing rents and food prices.
Housing rents rose by 10.7% in August, weighing on the overall rise in prices of housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels by 8.9%, according to the General Authority for Statistics.
The inflation rate had held steady at 1.5% in June and July, underpinned mostly by apartment rents.
In August data showed that food and beverage prices rose 0.9%, a bigger increase than in recent months, driven by a 4.6% rise in vegetable prices.
Prices in the restaurants and hotels category, as well as the education sector, also rose, while prices in the transport sub-category fell by 3.4% and those in the furnishing and home equipment sector declined 3.5%.
On a month-on-month basis, prices increased 0.1% in August.
Inflation has remained relatively low in Saudi Arabia this year compared with global levels.
In its latest country report, the International Monetary Fund forecast Saudi inflation will average 1.9% in 2024 and 2% in 2025.
Reporting by Rachna Uppal
Pakistan has deployed 8,000 troops, a squadron of fighter jets and an air defence system to Saudi Arabia under a mutual defence pact, ramping up military cooperation with Riyadh even as Islamabad serves as the main mediator in the Iran war.
Yasser Abbas, the millionaire businessman son of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, has secured a seat on Fatah's Central Committee - the party's highest decision-making body - fuelling speculation that the 90-year-old president may be grooming his son as a political successor.
A drone strike caused a fire at a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates, officials there said on Sunday, while Saudi Arabia reported intercepting three drones, as U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Iran must act "fast" after efforts to end the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran appeared to have stalled.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.