This is the first time the annual headline inflation rate has increased over the past six months.
CAPMAS data showed that the food and beverages sector saw a notable increase of 6.5 percent driven by the increase in prices of cereals and bread (by +8.1 percent), meat and poultry (by +1.3 percent), fish and seafood (by +6.2 percent), fruits (by +76.7 percent), and mineral and carbonated water (by +31 percent).
The data also indicated a rise in closing and footwear prices (by +18.3 percent) due to rising prices of fabric and ready-made garments.
Moreover, housing, water, and utilities prices rose by 17.4 percent, influenced by higher housing rents and utility costs.
The healthcare sector also witnessed a significant price increase of 25.5 percent due to rising costs of medical products and services.
Meanwhile, transportation increased by 29.5 percent, driven by rising vehicle purchase costs and transportation services.
Telecommunications prices also rose by 11.4 percent, mainly due to significant increases in postal service prices.
Furthermore, CAPMAS indicated an acceleration in the monthly inflation rate in March by 1.5 percent compared with February, with the consumer price index reaching 250.6 points.
The agency attributed this spike to the increase in prices of cereals and bread (by +0.5 percent), meat and poultry (by +2.8 percent), fruits (by +23.6 percent), and vegetables (by +3.1 percent).
The current global market chaos caused by the US president's newly imposed tariffs, accompanied by March's inflation readings, has minimized the room for the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to likely cut the key interest rates in its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for Thursday, 17 April.
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