The inflation rate in the Sultanate, calculated in terms of consumer price index (CPI), increased by 0.18% in February 2019 compared to the same month in 2018, according to the latest data released by the National Centre for Statistics and information (NCSI) on consumer prices' index. It also stated that the inflation rate fell by 0.10% compared to January 2019.
The increase in inflation was driven by a rise in cost of major segments such as food and non-alcoholic beverages by 1.07%; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels by 0.37%; restaurants and hotels by 0.60%; clothing and footwear by 0.25%; education by 2.02%; recreation and culture by 0.40%; and furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance by 4.46%.However, the prices of health; transport; communication; and miscellaneous goods and services fell by 0.49%; 1.41%; 0.36%; and 2.18%, respectively, in February 2019 compared to the same month of the previous year. Among foods and non-alcoholic beverages group, a marked fall of 1.63% and 0.15% was witnessed in fish and seafood products and fruit, respectively. The price of vegetables rose by 10.25%. Milk, cheese and eggs also witnessed a rise in price by 0.81%.
The prices of non-alcoholic beverages also rose by 0.26% in February 2019 against the same period of 2018.