Higher food and education costs pushed Morocco's year-on-year inflation to 2.6 per cent in November, official data showed on Monday, exceeding for the first time the government's 2010 inflation forecast.

Compared with the previous month, prices fell 0.7 percent after a 1.6 per cent drop in food and beverage prices, said HCP, Morocco's economic planning and statistics authority.

Food and beverage prices, which account for more than 40 per cent of the North African country's consumer price index, rose 5.2 per  cent in the 12 months to end-November, while education costs rose 4.6 per cent over the same period, HCP said in a statement.

Morocco's finance ministry has projected a 2 per cent inflation rate for both 2010 and next year.

Underlying inflation, a gauge used by Morocco's central bank to set the benchmark interest rate that excludes state tariffs and volatile prices, was up by an annual 0.5 per cent in November against 0.4 per cent in October.