Egypt- Mobile prices expected to hike after surge in fuel prices and VAT

(MENAFN- Daily News Egypt) The prices of mobile phones and electronic devices are expected to jump starting on Sunday as a result of the increase in the value-added tax (VAT) by 1% to reach 14%, next to the surge in fuel prices, which accounts for the bulk of transportation costs.

According to an official at one of the mobile manufacturing companies, the expected increase in mobile prices range from 10% to 20%.

The official believes that the new increase will affect the growth of the market during the second half of this year. He noted that sales stabilised in March and many companies began offering discounts and lower prices. He expected the increase to curb sales again.

It is noteworthy that Samsung scaled down its mobile prices by between 1.5% and 6.5% due to the stability of the exchange rate and to avoid the crisis of burning prices among traders. On the other hand, Chinese Itel's price list in Egypt rose from 5.5% to 13% in June.

The price of the 2017 Samsung Galaxy A5 price has reached EGP 6,999 instead of EGP 7,499, scaling down by 6.5%; and the price of the 2017 Galaxy A7 reached EGP 8,199 instead of EGP 8,699—marking a decrease of 5.5%. Samsung's 2016 J7 device is now selling at EGP 4,399 instead of EGP 4,499, a decline of 2.2%, while the price of the Galaxy S7 Edge is EGP 12,599 instead of EGP 12,799, down by 1.5%.

Samsung is aiming to raise its share of mobile phone sales in Egypt to 50% by the end of this month. The company's share is now standing near 43% of the phone market, as announced at the end of March 2017.

The company raised its share during the first quarter of this year, supported by the sales of its J and A series phones. The company's share reached 40% at the end of last year.

The Chinese Itel dealership—which entered the local market at the beginning of the second half of last year—raised the prices of phones by 5.5% to 13%, as the company did not raise the prices in February. Currently, the price of the Itel IT209 reached EGP 175 instead of EGP 155, an increase of 13%, and the price of the IT1508 reached EGP 940 instead of EGP 845, up by 11.2%, The IT1408 reached EGP730 instead of EGP 625, marking an increase of 16.8%, and the IT5320 reached EGP 315 instead of EGP 299, an increase of 5.5%.

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