Muscat, The prices of goods and consumer services in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries increased by 1.4% in July 2024 compared to the same month of the previous year. According to figures issued today by the Statistical Center of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, the housing group witnessed an increase of 5.8%, the restaurants and hotels group 2.0%, the culture and entertainment group 1.7%, the education group and the goods and services group 1.1% each, and the food and beverage group 1.0%. On the other hand, prices decreased in the health group by -0.3%, the clothing and footwear group -0.7%, the tobacco group -1.0%, the communications group -1.5%, the furniture and household equipment group - 2.1%, and the transportation group -2.6%. Regarding the contributions of the main groups to the general Gulf inflation in July 2024, the housing group contributed 1.6 percentage points to the total Gulf inflation rate of 1.4%, the food and beverages group contributed 0.2 percentage points, and each of the culture and entertainment group, the restaurants and hotels group, and the goods and services group contributed 0.1 percentage points each. In contrast, the transportation group contributed a negative contribution of -0.4 percentage points, the furniture group -0.2 percentage points, and the communications group -0.1 percentage points, while the rest of the groups did not record any significant contribution this month. The center's data indicates that consumer prices in the GCC countries rose in their price level in July 2024 compared to the previous month by 0.1%, and the most important groups witnessed an increase as follows: the housing group by 0.6% and each of the tobacco groups, the education group, and the restaurants group by 0.1% each, while prices decreased in the transportation group by -0.7%, and each of the clothing and footwear groups and the communications group by -0.2% each, and the culture and entertainment group by -0.1%, while the prices of the rest of the groups s tabilized at their previous levels. Source: Bahrain News Agency