GCC states’ inflation is predicted at 2.1% in 2021

Consumer prices in the Gulf Cooperation Council states are projected to have risen 2.1 per cent in 2021, compared with 1.2 per cent in 2020, Arab News quoted a report by the GCC Statistical Centre revealed.

Looking forward, inflation rate forecasts for 2022 and 2023 are predicted at 1.8 per cent and 2.6 per cent, respectively.

Inflationary pressures will come from jumps in costs of imported raw materials and consumables, the report explained. Also, consumer prices will rise as a result of higher consumption and public expenditure following improvements in employment rates and household income.

All Gulf countries are forecasted to have inflation rates in the range of 1-3 per cent in 2022, with Qatar hitting the highest rate.

Last year, all GCC states experienced deflation, a drop in consumer prices, except for Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which reach inflation rates of 3.4 per cent and 2.1 per cent. The latter two pushed the region’s overall inflation rate to 1.2 per cent in 2020.

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