CPI is a statistical indicator that measures the percentage of change that occurs in the prices of goods and services reflecting the consumption of consumers in the society during a time period, called the comparison period attributed to another time period known as the reference period. This index is important since it is an economic indicator which is used by economists and decision-makers.

​The CPI is composed of a group of goods and services. Prices’ data are collected on regular basis (weekly – monthly – quarterly) according to the nature of commodity or service. It is worth mentioning that the CPI has been rebased from 2007 to 2013. As of January 2015. 

From the new weights, it is noticeable that the relative weight for “Housing Rentals” category (relevant services) has dropped from 32.1% to 21.9% in the new basket, a decrease of 10.3%. The weight for “recreation and culture” group has changed from 4.1% to 12.7%, a rise of 8.6%. However, weight of “restaurants and hotels” group increased by 2.4%. The changes between the old and new weights in the remaining groups are considered insignificant and consistent with changes in the patterns of consumption of goods and services between 2007 and 2013.

The 2013-based CPI is presented using the latest version of the Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose (COICOP). The new classification contains 12 main groups, whereas the old one contains eight major groups. 

This report shows the CPI during the 3 months of Q2 2016. It covers the changes and analyzes their main causes that took place during this period.     

1. The overall CPI amounted to 107.6 points in Q2 2016, an increase of 0.2% compared to Q1 of 2016 (previous quarter).

2. By comparing the Q2 2016 overall CPI with its corresponding quarter of 2015, the annual increase reached 2.8%. 

3. The index for food and beverages reached 98.4 points, a decline of 0.4% compared to the previous quarter, and a 1.9% vis-à-vis the corresponding quarter of 2015. 

4. The index for the group of “Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels” reached 115.2 points, a rise of 0.1% compared to the previous quarter, and a 5.0% rise compared to its corresponding quarter of 2015. 

5. A rise in prices observed in five groups  that are “ Clothing and Footwear”, “Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels”, “Furnishing, Households Equipment “, “Entertainment and Recreation“, and “Miscellaneous goods and services”  increased compared to the corresponding quarter.

6. A decrease has been recorded in groups “Food and Beverages”, “Health” and “Transport”, “Communication”, and “Restaurants and Hotels” compared to the previous quarter. 

7. “Education” and “Tobacco” are holding steady between the Q1, 2016 and Q2, 2016. 

The overall CPI in this quarter attained 107.6 points due to several changes occurred in the groups of goods and services composing the overall CPI. Five groups have exceeded the overall CPI (107.6). Seven groups remained under the overall CPI rate. 

The five groups exceeded the overall CPI: 

1. “Tobacco” group reached 114.0 points in Q2 2016.

2. “Education” group attained 120.2 points due to the increase in fees of the Tertiary education.

3. “Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels” group reached 115.2 points due to the increase in rentals during Q2 of 2016, in addition to the rise of maintenance fees. Prices of fuels and water remained steady.  

4. “Transport” reached to 108.5 points, because of price rise in “Operation of Personal Transport Equipment”.

5. “Recreation and Culture” exceed the overall CPI and reached 109.3, due to prices increased in “Packages Holidays”. ​

To view the report, click here