Dubai inflation sees uptick in August, fueled by increase in fuel, housing, and utilities costs

Dubai’s annual inflation accelerated in August, inching up to 3.38% y-o-y, compared to the 3.32% y-o-y increase recorded in July, according to figures from the Dubai Statistics Center (pdf).

The culprits: Prices of housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels — the largest component of the basket of goods and services — surged at the highest pace this year to 6.92% y-o-y during August. Food and beverage inflation also picked up, reaching a five-month high of 2.75% y-o-y, compared to 2.46% y-o-y in July. Additionally, prices for restaurants and accommodation services rose to 0.22% y-o-y from a decrease of 0.31% y-o-y.

REMEMBER- The Fuel Price Follow-up Committee hiked fuel prices for August by around 2%, but slashed them by 6% in September.

Month-on-month, Dubai’s inflation accelerated to its highest level since January, rising to 0.55%, up from its 0.08% dip in July, according to the statistics center’s monthly inflation report (pdf).