The prices of Samsung televisions saw hikes in January, with some experiencing increases of over 60%, according to the price list the company sent to its distributers on 17 January.
The price of the 32-inch smart television increased from approximately EGP 3,700 in December to about EGP 5,800 in January—an increase of 56.7%.
The price of the 40-inch smart television increased from approximately EGP 9,000 to EGP 10,200, an increase of 13.3%, and according to the new price list, the price of the 48-inch smart television increased to EGP 12,000, while it had not exceeded EGP 10,000 in December 2016.
Also, the price of the 58-inch smart television increased to EGP 16,500, while the price of the 49-inch UHD curve television reached EGP 18,000. The price of the 49-inch SUHD curve television went up to EGP 26,500, while the price of one of Samsung’s two 55-inch smart curve SUHD televisions reached EGP 35,000 in the new price list, which will be implemented starting this month. As for the price of the 60-inch smart SUHD television, it reached EGP 38,600, while the price of one of the Samsung’s four 65-inch televisions reached EGP 49,000.
This January, Samsung raised the prices of its mobile phones, tablets, and some Internet of Things devices by 7-10% compared to December 2016. According to the January price list, the prices of Samsung’s smart watches increased as well.
Egypt is suffering a severe shortage in US dollar liquidity since 2015, which pushed the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) in cooperation with the government to take many measures. These measures include setting controls for imports and customs and cancelling the majority of the maximum limits of depositing dollars, in addition to increasing the dollar’s exchange rate by 14% in the official exchange market in March 2016, before liberalising the dollar exchange rate against the Egyptian pound last November, which led to the dollar jumping to about EGP 20.
