Egypt’s Yearly Inflation Rate Climbs to 16.8% in May 2025

The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) announced on Wednesday that Egypt’s annual urban consumer inflation rate climbed to 16.8% in May 2025, up from 13.9% in April 2025. This marks a significant acceleration in price increases across key sectors of the economy.

The primary driver of this inflationary trend was the food and beverage sector, which recorded a 6.2% year-on-year increase. Notable price increases included:

Fruits: up by 62%Cereals and bread: up by 12.9%Fish and seafood: up by 6.9%Dairy products, cheese, and eggs: up by 5.3%Soft drinks and juices: up by 22.6%Coffee and tea: up by 7.8%

In contrast, some food categories experienced marginal declines:

Meat and poultry: down by 0.5%Oils and fats: down by 0.7%Sugar and related products: down by 1.2%

The housing, water, electricity, and gas sector saw an 18.4% annual increase, primarily driven by a sharp 39.3% rise in electricity, gas, and fuel prices, as well as an 11.9% increase in rents.

Significant inflation was also recorded in the transportation sector, which rose 33.7% on an annual basis. This was due to:

A 14.4% increase in vehicle purchase pricesA 41% surge in transportation service costsA 27.7% rise in private transportation expenses