MUSCAT, 8th March, 2025 (WAM) -- The data released by the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf (GCC-Stat) indicates that the overall inflation rate in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries rose by 1.7 percent at the end of October 2024 compared to the rate recorded during the same month of the previous year, according to consumer price data for the GCC countries.

The increase in the annual overall inflation rate in the GCC countries is mainly attributed to the increase in the prices of the housing group by 6.4 percent, the goods and services group by 3 percent, the restaurants and hotels group by 1.7 percent, the culture and entertainment group by 1.4 percent, the education group by 1.2 percent, and the food and beverages group by 0.8 percent.

This was offset by a decrease in prices in the transportation group by 3.6 percent, the furniture and household equipment group by 1.9 percent, tobacco by 1.1 percent, the communications group by 0.9 percent, and the clothing and footwear group by 0.4 percent, while the prices of the health group remained stable at their previous levels.

The overall inflation rate in the GCC countries was also lower than the European Union's inflation rate of 2.3 percent, and lower than many of the GCC's main trading partners in total merchandise imports.

Brazil recorded the highest inflation rate in October 2024 compared to the same month of the previous year at 4.8 percent, followed by India at 4.4 percent, the United Kingdom at 3.2 percent, the United States at 2.6 percent, Japan at 2.3 percent, Germany at 2 percent, Republic of Korea at 1.3 percent, France at 1.2 percent, Italy at 0.9 percent, and China at 0.3 percent.