Inflation edges up in the UAE

Inflation in the UAE is edging higher, but remains stable, according to new statistics

The consumer prices in the UAE rose 0.66 per cent in 2012 compared to last year’s result, according to the annual report released yesterday by the National Bureau of Statistics.

The overall Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the UAE reached 116.78 in 2012, and with comparison with the base year (2007 =100) the average increase of prices amount to 0.66 per cent compared with 2011.

The largest individual increases were recorded in beverage and tobacco by 6.36 per cent, followed by food and soft drinks by 5.24 per cent, education by 4.50 per cent, restaurants and hotels by 4.14 per cent, textiles, clothing and footwear by 2.42 per cent, furniture and household goods by 2.11 per cent, the report said.

Moreover, other expenditure groups like transportation has witnessed a slight increase by 0.16 per cent while communication went up by 0.01per cent.

The largest individual decrease was recorded in housing by 2.57 per cent.