Muscat: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the Sultanate of Oman experienced a modest increase of 1.1 percent in August 2024, when compared to the corresponding period in the previous year, with 2018 serving as the base year. This data, provided by the National Centre for Statistics and Information, reflects a rise in the cost of various goods and services.
The CPI data shows a general increase across several sectors, with the most notable rise observed in the food and non-alcoholic beverages category, which saw a 4.4 percent increase. This was followed by a 3.3 percent increase in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, a 2.4 percent increase in the health sector, a 1.7 percent increase in housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, a 0.7 percent increase in culture and entertainment, a 0.4 percent increase in restaurants and hotels, and a 0.3 percent increase in clothing and footwear.
Conversely, the prices of transportation groups experienced a slight decrease of 2.7 percent, while furniture, household equipment, and routine home maintenance saw a decrease of 0.6 percent. Education witnessed a 0.4 percent decrease, and the prices of tobacco and communication groups remained unchanged.
Within the food and non-alcoholic beverages category, there was a significant increase in the prices of vegetables by 11.5 percent, fruits by 7.4 percent, milk, cheese, and eggs by 5.4 percent, meat by 2.8 percent, sugar, jam, honey, and sweets by 2.3 percent, food products not classified under another category by 1.9 percent, oils and fats by 1.2 percent, non-alcoholic beverages by 1.1 percent, bread and cereals by 1 percent, and fish and seafood prices experienced a slight decrease of 4.1 percent.
In terms of regional variations, the Musandam Governorate recorded the highest inflation rate at the end of August 2024, with an increase of 2.3 percent compared to the previous year. This was followed by an increase of 2.2 percent in South Al Sharqiyah Governorate, 2 percent in Al Wusta and North Al Sharqiyah Governorates, 1.6 percent in North Al Batinah and Al Buraimi Governorates, 1.3 percent in Dhofar Governorate, 1 percent in Al Dhahirah and Al Dakhiliyah Governorates, 0.8 percent in Muscat Governorate, and a slight increase of 0.7 percent in South Al Batinah Governorate.
