By Reuters
Egypt’s annual urban consumer inflation accelerated to a slower-than-expected 13.5 percent year-on-year in May, data from the state statistics agency CAPMAS showed on Thursday.
The inflation figure, up from 13.1 percent in April, fell short of a median forecast of 14.2 percent in a Reuters poll of 17 analysts.
The increased inflation could impact the central bank’s monetary policy committee when it meets on June 23. As of May 19, the committee had raised its interest rates by 200 basis points at its last meeting on May 19.
Monthly inflation, at 1.1 percent, “was impacted by food items such as bread and cereals, oils and fats and seafood, offsetting the sharp drop in vegetable prices and the favourable base year impact,” said Allen Sandeep of Naeem Research.
