Israeli annual CPI hits 20-yr-high of 5.3%

Jerusalem, Jan 16 (IANS) The consumer price index (CPI) in Israel rose by 5.3 per cent in 2022, according to data issued by the Central Bureau of Statistics on Sunday, the highest calendar-year level since 2002 when the annual inflation rate was 6.5 per cent.

This is a sharp rise from 2020 which recorded a deflation of 0.7 per cent and 2021 when the annual CPI was 2.8 per cent, reports Xinhua news agency.

Inflation is continuing to rise even though the Israeli central bank has gradually raised the base interest rate from 0.1 per cent in April 2022 to 3.75 per cent at present.

"The global shortage of raw materials continued, and demand still exceeds supply, so even the sharp interest increase still does not affect inflation," Gad Lior, a senior analyst for Yedioth Ahronoth daily newspaper, told Xinhua.

He estimated that the interest rate hike will continue, and may reach 4.25 per cent by the end of the first quarter of 2023.

Israel's home prices in the October-November period of 2022 registered a year-on-year increase of 18.8 per cent, down from a 12-year high of 20.3 per cent reported in the previous monthly period.