STORY: Egypt's annual inflation rate hits record high of 36.8 pct in June
DATELINE: July 11, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:39
LOCATION: Cairo
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of exterior of the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS)
2. various of the Nile River
3. various of a supermarket
4. various of a market selling vegetables
5. various of shops selling meat and poultry

STORYLINE:

Egypt's annual inflation rate rose to an all-time high of 36.8 percent in June, up from 14.7 percent in the same month a year earlier, the country's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) announced on Monday.
   
According to a statement by CAPMAS, food and drink prices registered a 64.9 percent increase compared to June 2022.
   
Among the factors that pushed up the record year-on-year rise, the most notable are increases in restaurants, alcohol and cigarette, furniture and appliances, according to the statement.
   
Urban inflation rate registered a month-on-month increase of 2 percent in June, the statement added.
   
The previous annual record rise of 34.2 percent was recorded in July 2017, which followed a sharp currency devaluation associated with securing a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
   
The Egyptian pound has lost half its value against the U.S. dollar since March 2022. The devaluation of the currency has led to a foreign currency shortage and delays in import delivery.
   
The country's economic crisis has been worsened by the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict that has destabilized the food supply chains.
   
In December 2022, Egypt secured a 3-billion-dollar financial support package from the IMF to support its economic and structural reforms.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Cairo.
(XHTV)