Saudi Inflation Steady at 1.8% Despite Global Commodity Market Turmoil

Saudi Arabia's inflation rate remained steady at 1.8% in July, despite global commodity market turmoil, according to data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). The slight increase was driven primarily by a 4.2% rise in housing prices, with actual housing rents increasing by 4.3%. Food and beverages also saw a 1.5% increase.

However, economist Ahmed Al-Shahri cautioned that the figure should not be taken as evidence of disappearing price pressures, particularly given continued high demand for housing in major cities. He warned that the challenge ahead will be controlling overall inflation while preventing housing sector pressures from spreading to other spending categories.

King Abdulaziz University economics professor Salem Baajajah praised the 1.8% rate as a 'positive reading for the economy', given ongoing global inflationary pressures. The data showed that inflation remains concentrated in a limited number of categories, rather than reflecting broad-based price increases.