AFP, RIYADH: Inflation rates in Saudi Arabia soared in January after the government introduced a string of price hikes to boost non-oil revenues, authorities said yesterday.

Rates rose three percent in January compared to the same period the previous year, the General Statistics Authority said in a report on its website.

The jump was even more stark in December, having jumped 3.9 per cent since the previous year.

Inflation rates in the oil-rich kingdom remained in negative territory for almost all of 2017, as the economy contracted due to persistent low oil prices.

But Riyadh has been steadily imposing new fees and taxes in a quest for new sources of revenue.

The government last year doubled the price of tobacco, increased the prices of soft drinks and energy drinks, and imposed hefty fees on expatriates and their dependents.