Arab Finance: Egypt's annual headline inflation rose to 36% in February, compared to 31.2% in January, the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) announced on March 10^th.

Persisting inflation was driven by the 48.5% year-on-year (YoY) increase in the prices of food and beverages last January, resulting from the 47% hike in prices of grains and bread and the 42.9% increase in poultry and meat prices.

Additionally, the prices of the alcoholic beverage and tobacco segment were 87% higher than in February 2023, while the furniture and home appliances segment registered a 38.4% YoY hike in prices.

However, the monthly inflation rate rose to 11% in February from 1.7% in February, with the consumer price index (CPI) recording 219.4 points.