Over the 12 months to July 2018, GCC consumer prices rose by 4.7%
Issue date: 16 September 2018
Over the 12 months to July 2018, Price change for consumer goods and services (excluding housing)[1] in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries rose by 4.7%, according to figures released today by GCC-Stat, the Statistical Center for the Cooperation Council of the Arab Countries of the Gulf.
The biggest increases were for Tobacco 20.8%, Transport 12.1%, Restaurant & Hotels by 6.3%, Food 4.1%, Education 2.9%, Health 2.8%, Recreation 2.7%, Miscellaneous 2.2%, Furnishings 1.9%, Communication 1.7%. On the other hand, Clothing and Footwear fell by -0.9%.
In terms of contributions to the 4.7 percent annual increase, Transport contributed 1.9 percentage points, Food 1.1 percentage points, Restaurant & Hotels 0.5 percentage points, Education 0.3 percentage points, “Tobacco”, “Furnishings”, and “Miscellaneous” 0.2 percentage points each, “Health”, “Communication” and “Recreation” 0.1 percentage points each. In contrast, The Clothing and Footwear contributed by -0.1 percentage points.
Over the 12 months to July 2018, the country contributions to overall GCC consumer price change were UAE 2.5 percentage points, Saudi Arabia 1.9 percentage points, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait contributed 0.1 percentage points each.
GCC overall consumer price have increased in July 2018 compared with the previous month by 0.3%. The most significant price rises during July 2018 were in Recreation 1.0%, food 0.8%, Restaurant & Hotels 0.4%, Health 0.3%, Tobacco and Transport 0.2% each and Miscellaneous 0.1%. In contrast, Communication fell by -0.3%, Clothing and Footwear -0.2% and Furnishings by -0.1%.
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Table 1. Aggregate GCC inflation |
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Index points, 2007=100 |
Change, Percent |
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Main Groups |
Weights Per cent |
July 2017 |
June 2018 |
July 2018 |
July 2018 / June 2018 |
July 2018 / July 2017 |
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Food and beverage |
24.0% |
143.9 |
148.7 |
149.9 |
0.8 |
4.1 |
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Tobacco |
0.7% |
231.4 |
278.9 |
279.6 |
0.2 |
20.8 |
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Clothing and footwear |
7.5% |
111.0 |
110.2 |
110.0 |
-0.2 |
-0.9 |
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Furnishings, household equipment |
10.5% |
132.3 |
135.1 |
134.9 |
-0.1 |
1.9 |
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Health |
2.7% |
117.2 |
120.2 |
120.5 |
0.3 |
2.8 |
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Transport |
16.8% |
124.1 |
138.8 |
139.1 |
0.2 |
12.1 |
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Communication |
9.5% |
92.8 |
94.8 |
94.5 |
-0.3 |
1.7 |
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Recreation and culture |
5.2% |
113.1 |
115.0 |
116.1 |
1.0 |
2.7 |
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Education |
7.4% |
151.3 |
155.7 |
155.7 |
0.0 |
2.9 |
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Restaurants and hotels |
7.5% |
136.2 |
144.3 |
144.8 |
0.4 |
6.3 |
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Miscellaneous |
8.3% |
134.5 |
137.3 |
137.4 |
0.1 |
2.2 |
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All Groups Excluding Housing |
100.0 |
129.5 |
135.2 |
135.6 |
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0.3 |
4.7 |
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GCC CONSUMER PRICE CHANGE, JULY 2018
KEY POINTS: July 2017 TO July 2018
THE GCC ALL GROUPS EXCLUDING HOUSING
- The GCC CPI rose 4.7% over the twelve months, compared with increase of 4.2% in June 2018/ June 2017.
- The most significant price rises over the twelve months were for Tobacco 20.8%, Transport 12.1%, Restaurant & Hotels by 6.3%, Food 4.1%, Education 2.9%, Health 2.8%, Recreation 2.7%, Miscellaneous 2.2%, Furnishings 1.9%, Communication 1.7%. On the other hand, Clothing and Footwear fell by -0.9%.
CONTRIBUTIONS TO PRICE CHANGE OVER THE 12 MONTHS
- Of the 4.7 percent growth in GCC Consumer Prices over the 12 months to July 2018, the most significant contributors were:
o Transport contributed 1.9 percentage points.
o Food contributed 1.1 percentage points.
o Restaurant & Hotels contributed 0.5 percentage points.
o Education contributed 0.3 percentage points.
o Tobacco, Furnishings and Miscellaneous contributed 0.2 percentage points each.
o Health, Communication and Recreation contributed 0.1 percentage points each.
o Clothing contributed by -0.1 percentage.
- At the country level:
o UAE contributed 2.5 percentage points.
o Saudi Arabia 1.9 percentage points.
o Bahrain 0.1 percentage points.
o Oman 0.1 percentage points.
o Qatar 0.1 percentage points.
o Kuwait 0.1 percentage points.
KEY POINTS: July 2018 THE GCC ALL GROUPS EXCLUDING HOUSING
- GCC consumer price have increased by 0.3% in July 2018/ June 2018.
OVERVIEW OF CPI MOVEMENTS IN JULY 2018
- The most significant prices increases during July 2018 were in Recreation 1.0%, food 0.8%, Restaurant & Hotels 0.4%, Health 0.3%, Tobacco and Transport 0.2% each and Miscellaneous 0.1%. In contrast, Communication fell by -0.3%, Clothing and Footwear by -0.2% and Furnishings by -0.1%.
Further information and statistics are available from the GCC-Stat website: http://www.gccstat.org For more details on the construction of the GCC index of consumer price change, see (http://gccstat.org/en/elibrary/publications/gccstat/item/aggregate-gcc-inflation
[1] GCC-Stat compiles an aggregate inflation measure for the whole GCC region. This aggregate excludes the “Housing, water, electricity, gas and other related items” group from national indices, for which the data are deemed non-comparable due to methodological differences that significantly hinders cross-country comparisons. The national CPI data are weighted into a GCC aggregate using Purchasing power parity adjusted estimates of relevant national household consumption expenditures.
