Saudi Arabia's inflation rose to 2.3% year-on-year in June 2022, according to recent data by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). Inflation is measured by the change percentage in the cost of living between the current period and the corresponding period of the previous year. The increase in the consumer price index (CPI) was mainly driven by a 4.4% year-on-year (YoY) rise in food and beverage prices, followed by transport prices at 6.2% YoY. The CPI reflects price changes of a fixed basket of goods and services that includes 490 items. The items were chosen based on the results of the Household Expenditure and Income Survey conducted in 2018. Prices are collected through points of sale (POS) field visits. Also, prices of 17 goods and services in Saudi Arabia decreased year-on-year (YoY) in June 2022, while prices of 145 out of 169 goods and services rose, data issued by the Authority showed. Out of the 91 food products, local potatoes recorded the highest rise by 52.96% YoY. It was followed by local tomatoes with a 41.82% increase YoY. On the other hand, Indian cardamom and American cardamom saw the steepest decline YoY at 17.07% and 14.64%, respectively. Meanwhile, prices of 36 construction materials increased YoY in June, while one product declined during the same month. Prices of 11 fodder and livestock products increased YoY during the month. For clothes, nine items under this category saw an increase and one saw a drop. — SG
