Syrian Center for Policy Research:
The bulletin provides an independent assessment of consumer prices and the rate of inflation in all Syrian regions, based on a monthly survey of consumer prices carried out by the Syrian Center for Policy Research (SCPR) since October 2020. The SCPR had developed a methodology for building a price index based on components of consumer basket, weighting, and market selection (See SCPR’s Consumer Price Index in Syria)
This bulletin presents the findings of the monthly consumer price survey and the changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July 2023 (with 2021 as the base year) broken down by region and the major consumption groups. Based on the CPI changes, the bulletin provides an estimate of the cost of living and poverty lines at the local level in all Syrian regions.
The following results are highlighted:
- The general CPI achieved a substantial leap in annual and monthly inflation in July 2023 compared to the previous six months. This month’s annual inflation rate (Y-o-Y) exceeded the 111 per cent limit, and monthly inflation (M-o-M) exceeded 20 per cent.
- In July 2023, the governorates of Homs, Ar-Raqqa and Al-Hasakeh marked the highest monthly inflation rates at 28 per cent and 33 per cent. The governorate of Deir-Ezzor, Rural Damascus, Dara’a, As-Sweida, and Hama recorded a high inflation rate between 20 per cent and 25 per cent.
- The exchange rate of the Syrian pound (SYP) and Turkish lira (TL) to the USD fell significantly in July 2023 by 23.8 per cent and 13.1 per cent for each other (monthly average). The Syrian pound reached a value of 13200 SYP per dollar at the end of July 2023, compared with 9025 SYP per USD at the beginning. The Turkish lira amounted to TL 27.7 per dollar at the end of July 2023, compared to TL 26.3 in the first of July.
- In July 2023, the Food and non-alcoholic beverages group contributed significantly to the monthly inflation (M-o-M) with 20.5 per cent, making up 51 per cent of the total, followed by the Housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel oils group with a contribution of 22 per cent, trailed by the Tobacco group at 6.2 per cent.
- The monthly inflation in July 2023 had a significant impact, leading to a decrease in the real wages of public sector workers in GoS areas by 16.6 per cent compared to June 2023. Similarly, the wages for workers in AA areas decreased by 22.8 per cent, while wages in SSG and and SIG areas increased by 1.6 per cent during the month.
- In July 2023, the abject poverty line for families, rose to SYP 1.6 million per month, marking an increase of SYP 300 thousand from June 2023. The lower poverty line increased by SYP 585 thousand from the previous month to reach SYP 2.5 million, while the upper poverty line saw an SYP 654 thousand increase, reaching SYP 3.46 million.
- In July 2023, the wage gap from the upper poverty line reached 91 per cent for university-educated employees in the public sector, 57 per cent for private sector workers, and 55.7 per cent for civil society workers. In all three instances.
To read the bulletin in English:
Monthly Bulletin – Issue (7), 2023 (En)
To read the bulletin in Arabic:
Monthly Bulletin – Issue (7), 2023 (Ar)
