Oman’s inflation rises to 1.1% in November

Oman’s annual inflation, which is based on consumer price index (CPI), increased to 1.11 per cent in November compared to the same month of 2017, according to the latest statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NSCI).

However, inflation rate in November slightly decreased by 0.06 per cent compared with the inflation rate in the previous month.

The increase in annual inflation in November was driven mainly by higher costs of transportation, fuels and education segments compared to a year ago. Prices in transport category jumped by 5.58 per cent in November on year-on-year basis, while prices in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuel categories increased 0.57 per cent. Miscellaneous goods and services category recorded a 1.32 per cent rise in prices, while restau- rants and hotels segment saw a 0.34 per cent growth in price index.

Prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages group dropped by 0.83 per cent year-on-year in November. Among food and non-alcoholic beverages group, a marked decline of 3.7 per cent was witnessed in vegetables while price of fruit declined by 3.77 per cent in November 2018 compared to the same month of 2017. Prices of fish and seafood products also fell 4.15 per cent on year-on-year basis.

Inflation in household furniture, equipment and household maintenance category fell 0.77 per cent, while healthcare segment recorded a sharp 3.53 per cent decline in November compared to the same month a year ago. Prices of tobacco products remained 0.11 per cent lower in November compared to the same month of last year.