(MENAFN) Qatar's Consumer price index (CPI) inflation has averaged 1.5 percent in the year to July versus last year's 3.1 percent, and the underperformance can be attributed to falling rents as well as lower foreign inflation.
Foreign inflation has been lower this year as global food prices have been on a steady falling path since their peak in the summer of 2012, while strong population on a domestic level didn't help the inflationary pressures.
Housing inflation slowed from an estimated 4.6 percent year-on-year in January to 2.3 percent in July, furthermore, transportation inflation has slowed to 3.2 percent year-on-year in July from an estimated 7.6 percent year-on-year in January 2015.
The strong US dollar is another factor likely to keep inflation down for the rest of the year. The trade weighted index for the US dollar, to which the Qatari riyal is pegged, has appreciated 19.5 percent in the 12 months to end-July.
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