After the peaks recorded last year, the inflation curve continues to move up and down, depending on international crises and weather conditions. One thing seems certain for the moment: the prices of consumer products, particularly in the food segment, will no longer return to what they were before, notes the daily The Economist in its edition of Friday November 8.
«The various measures launched by the government have not succeeded in curbing the galloping prices of certain products. The most striking example is that of red meats. Already, the subsidy granted to importers as part of Eid Al Adha had practically no impact on prices, in the government’s own opinion. Other support measures, particularly for the benefit of carriers, have also not had the expected effect», lit.
In any case, the latest figures from the HCP show that the consumer price index experienced stagnation during the month of last September. But it remains at fairly high levels. While some products experienced a slight decline, notably fish and fruit, others continued to increase, particularly vegetables and meat.
In these conditions, households no longer know which way to turn. The high cost of living continues to weigh on family budgets. An observation confirmed by the latest results of the household confidence index. This stood at 46.2 points in the 3rd quarter of 2024 compared to 46.5 points for the same period last year. The repercussions of successive increases in the prices of consumer products have damaged household morale. 80.6% of them declared a deterioration in the standard of living over the last 12 months. For the next year, 56.9% of households expect their standard of living to deteriorate, while 35.5% expect the current level to remain unchanged.
«This situation is due in particular to the high cost of consumer products, particularly food products. During the 3rd quarter of 2024, almost all households (97.5%) reported that food prices increased. For the next 12 months, 84.4% expect further increases», lit-on encore.
Faced with the persistence of a fairly high cost of living, the government tried to alleviate the situation by focusing on a series of support measures. First, one-off actions, such as aid for farmers (notably for inputs), for transporters or even for sheep importers.
Added to this is the new direct social assistance formula granted to households on the basis of scoring within the framework of the Unified Social Register. Other measures are also being implemented, following the agreement ratified within the framework of social dialogue. This concerns in particular salary increases in the public sector and the revision of the IR scale, enshrined via the 2025 finance bill, with a cost amounting to 5.5 billion dirhams.
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