War in Ukraine wheat belt hits Egypt pockets

War in Ukraine wheat belt hits Egypt pockets

CAIRO: Soaring bread prices sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have bitten into the purchasing power of consumers in Egypt, a leading importer of wheat from the former Soviet states. For the first time since he took office, President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi on Tuesday ordered a price cap on unsubsidized bread after the cost of the Egyptian staple rose by as much as 50 percent.

The move is designed to cushion the invasion’s impact on a country where, according to Michael Tanchum of the Middle East Institute, “keeping the price of Egypt’s staple food affordable has been the bedrock of regime stability” for 60 years. A fortnight ago, 1,500 Egyptian pounds ($95) was enough for Shaimaa Mohamed to buy a month’s worth of groceries. Now, the mother of three says it is barely enough for two weeks.

Mohamed warned her children that the family would have to tighten its purse strings after a kilogram of rice went from eight to 12 pounds seemingly overnight. “I was in the same store 15 days ago, and today for the same price I have only filled half of my shopping cart. What happened?” she said. The answer lies thousands of kilometers away in Ukraine, once