Egypt's inflation slows to 25.7% in July
Egypt's annual urban consumer price inflation eased to 25.7% in July from 27.5% in June, the country's statistics agency CAPMAS said on Thursday, a larger drop than forecast by analysts.
Month-on-month prices fell by 0.4%, slowing from a 1.6% rise in June. Food prices eased by 0.3% in July, though they were still 28.5% higher than a year ago.
Egypt's core inflation, which strips out volatile items such as fuel and some types of food, slowed to an annual 24.4% from 26.6% in June, separate central bank data showed.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly told a news conference that Egypt aims to reduce inflation to below 10% by the end of 2025 or the beginning of 2026.
A poll of 18 analysts had forecast urban inflation would ease to 26.6% in July, extending a decline from September's peak of 38.0%.
Egypt has tightened monetary policy under an $8 billion International Monetary Fund financial support package signed in March which also required it to increase many domestic prices and devalue its currency.
The central bank raised interest rates by 600 basis points (bps) in March, bringing total increases this year to 800 bps, while the government has hiked the price of subsidised bread by 300% and the price of fuel by up to 15%.
The deficit hit 505 billion Egyptian pounds ($10.27 billion) in a 3.016 trillion pound budget in the year to June 30.