April 6, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBoS) in Sudan reported that the inflation rate dropped in March to 35.7% from 37.0% in March.

FILE - Men wait to buy meat at the market in Khartoum, Sudan (REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)

Q1 2014 inflation rate dropped sharply to 37.0% compared to 46.1% in Q1 2013, CBoS said in its monthly bulletin.

The bulletin also reported that the general level of prices for high-weighted food and beverages component increased slightly to 382.3 points from 380.1 in the previous month. The overall price average of consumer goods and services increased by 1.1%.

On a monthly basis, there was also a decrease in meat prices (-1.5%); decline in prices of vegetables and pulses (-2.7%); drop in sugar prices (-1.1%); decrease in prices of coffee and tea (-1.4%).

Sudan imports most of its food from abroad which uses up a large chunk of its foreign exchange reserves. The continued decline in the value of the Sudanese pound relative to the US dollar contributed to a surge in prices of basic commodities in the last few years.

Last September, the government slashed subsidies on fuel and cooking gas and also devalued the currency which triggered violent protests across the country.

(ST)