KUWAIT CITY, Jan 22: In a recent release of official government data by the Central Administration of Statistics, Kuwait's consumer price index (CPI) experienced a 3.37% increase on an annual basis for December. The data also indicated a 0.30% rise in the consumer price index every month.

According to a statement from the "Statistics" department, the inflation rate for December reached 131.9 points, compared to 127.6 points in December 2022. The index was influenced by increases across its 12 groups, with clothing and apparel leading at approximately 6.72%, followed by a 4.74% increase in the food and beverage group. The cigarette and tobacco group showed the lowest annual increase at 0.22%.

Every month, the inflation rate in Kuwait increased by 0.30%. The health group saw a notable rise of 0.92%, followed by a 0.91% increase in the restaurants and hotels group, while the communications group remained stable.

In November, the annual inflation rate in Kuwait stood at 3.79%, showing minimal change from October's 3.8%. Notable increases were recorded in the clothing and footwear group (6.86%) and the food and beverages group (5.81%) on an annual basis.

In the same period, the general consumer price index rose by 0.23% every month in November. The food and beverages group increased by 0.9%, while the clothing and footwear group rose by 0.44%.

In a related context, Kuwait's imports witnessed growth in the third quarter of 2023, reaching 2.807 billion dinars (approximately 9.078 billion dollars), compared to 2.665 billion dinars in the corresponding period last year.