Inflation causes unrest

Tunisia's consumer price inflation increased to 5.9 percent year-on-year in March from 5.7 percent in February, government figures showed on Monday. Food price inflation slowed to 8.5 percent in March from 8.6 percent a month earlier, but transport costs quickened to 6.4 percent from 4.3 percent.

Rising prices of essential goods have eaten into living standards in the north African country of 10 million. Three days of protests against rising living costs and joblessness in Tunisia's central town of Redeyef last week ended with clashes between police and demonstrators and 20 arrests.

The government has envisaged an inflation rate of 3.0 percent for full-year 2008, down from 3.1 percent in 2007. The International Monetary Fund sees Tunisia's inflation increasing to 4 percent due to soaring world commodity prices.

Reuters