\n\tRIYADH: Kuwait\u2019s annual inflation rate\u00a0eased to\u00a02.49 percent in May, driven by higher prices for food, healthcare, clothing, education, and miscellaneous goods, new figures showed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tIssued by the state\u2019s Central Statistical Bureau, the May 2026 Consumer Price Index report showed that consumer prices increased 0.07 percent from April.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe latest data comes as inflation in Kuwait remains relatively contained by regional standards. In its\u00a0latest\u00a0Article IV Consultation, the International Monetary Fund projected headline consumer price inflation to moderate to 2.1 percent in 2026 before stabilizing at just below 2 percent over the medium term, supported by prudent macroeconomic policies and easing price pressures.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe IMF also expects Kuwait\u2019s economy to expand by 3.8 percent in 2026, driven by the gradual unwinding of OPEC+ production cuts and continued growth in the non-oil sector, supporting a stable inflation outlook despite ongoing regional uncertainties.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThe CPI is one of the most important economic indicators to follow-up the business condition and the economic situation in Kuwait. This indicator is also an essential element to follow the overall price movements in retail markets,\u201d the report said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tIt added: \u201cThis indicator is used as a measure of the changes in the purchasing power of the currency and to determine the interest rates and liquidity by the Central Bank of Kuwait and to support the adoption of appropriate economic decisions by the official bodies as well as for the preparation of national accounts at constant prices.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tFood and beverage prices rose 5.96 percent in May from a year earlier, while cigarettes and tobacco prices increased 0.07 percent. Clothing and footwear costs climbed 1.10 percent, housing services rose 0.49 percent, and furniture and household equipment prices increased 1.18 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tHealthcare costs rose 1.19 percent year on year, while transportation increased 4.46 percent. Communications and recreation and culture prices rose 1.03 percent and 1.06 percent, respectively, while education increased 0.94 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe data also showed that restaurant and hotel prices rose 0.88 percent annually in May, while miscellaneous goods and services recorded the largest increase, climbing 6.61 percent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe latest inflation data also comes against a backdrop of continued confidence in Kuwait’s credit profile. In May, Moody\u2019s Ratings affirmed the country’s long-term foreign and local currency issuer ratings at A1 with a stable outlook, despite heightened geopolitical risks and disruptions to regional trade routes.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"RIYADH: Kuwait\u2019s annual inflation rate\u00a0eased to\u00a02.49 percent in May, driven by higher prices for food, healthcare, clothing, education,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":504127,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[114,184,85,46],"class_list":["post-504126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-economy","tag-il","tag-israel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/504126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=504126"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/504126\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/504127"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=504126"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=504126"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=504126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}