November marked the 17th month in a row that Lebanon has recorded triple-digit year-on-year inflation, meaning at least a doubling of prices compared to the same month the year before. (Credit: PHB)
BEIRUT — Consumer prices tripled year-on-year last month, with November 2021 prices standing 201.07 percent higher than those of November 2020, and 10.63 percent higher than the prices recorded in October 2021, according to the latest figures released by the government’s Central Administration of Statistics.
This marks the 17th month in a row that Lebanon has recorded triple-digit year-on-year inflation, meaning at least a doubling of prices compared to the same month the year before.
Since the beginning of the financial crisis in July 2019, the consumer price index has risen a total of 628.78 percent, meaning prices are more than seven times higher than they were at the start of the crisis. The consumer price index uses a basket of commonly purchased consumer goods as reference points to calculate inflation.
November health care costs jumped 43.03 percent from the previous month, and 374.27 percent from the same month last year. The recent monthly increase reflects the partial removal of subsidies on drugs for chronic diseases.
Transportation is still the category with the fastest rise year over year. Costs exploded 579.90 percent year over year, more than a six-fold increase, after the removal of subsidies in October 2021.
The average calculated rate for the lira on the parallel market during the month of November is LL22,900 to the US dollar against an average of LL19,700 to the US dollar for October, a loss of value of 13.97 percent for the national currency.