FX.co ★ Saudi Arabia’s Inflation Rises Less Than Expected

In December, Saudi Arabia experienced an increase in its annual inflation rate to 2.1%, up from 1.9% in November, which was marginally below the market's forecast of 2.2%. Notable price accelerations were observed in categories such as personal care, social protection, and miscellaneous goods, which increased to 7.0% from 6.6% in the prior month. The recreation, sport, and culture sector also saw a rise in inflation, moving from 1.3% to 2.4%, and restaurants and accommodation services experienced a shift from a decrease of 0.5% to an increase of 0.9%. Additionally, there was a modest price escalation in clothing and footwear, moving up to 0.4% from 0.3%, and in information and communication, which edged up to 0.2% from 0.1%. The furnishings and household equipment category resurfaced into positive growth at 0.1%, compared to a decline of 0.3% previously. Conversely, there was a slight downturn in inflation rates for housing, utilities, and fuels, which decreased to 4.1% from 4.3%, and for insurance and financial services, where inflation dropped to 4.1% from 5.1%. Inflation rates held steady for food and beverages, tobacco, health, transport, and education services at 1.3%, 1.0%, 0.2%, 1.5%, and 1.5%, respectively. On a month-to-month basis, consumer prices increased by 0.1%, maintaining the same growth rate as reported in the preceding period.