In 2022, Cyprus reported a decline in the percentage of its population at risk of poverty or social exclusion, dropping to 16.7% from 17.3% in 2021. This marks a positive shift of roughly 4,000 individuals no longer under such risk.

To commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17, the Statistical Service of Cyprus unveiled an infographic detailing this progress. It highlighted that the at-risk category includes those living in households with disposable income below the poverty threshold, facing severe material and social deprivation, or residing in households with minimal work intensity.

In numbers, 150,000 individuals were at risk in 2022, compared to 154,000 in the previous year.

Cyprus experienced a significant 17.9% increase in tourist arrivals in September 2023 compared to the same month in 2022. The total arrivals for September 2023 amounted to 487,350, marking a substantial rise from the 413,382 in September 2022. This uptrend aligns with the broader trajectory of the year, as the January to September 2023 window witnessed a 23.4% spike in tourists, amassing 3,136,145 arrivals.

The Statistical Service of Cyprus, which released this data, identified the United Kingdom as the leading contributor to Cyprus's tourism for September 2023, accounting for 34% of total arrivals or 165,869 visitors. Israel, Poland, Germany, and Sweden were also major contributors, with their respective visitor percentages being 11.7%, 6.7%, 5.5%, and 4.6%.

Travel motivations remained consistent, with holidays being the dominant reason at 84.1%. Other reasons included visiting friends and relatives (10.3%) and business engagements (5.5%).

September 2023 also saw a 14.5% surge in the number of Cypriot residents returning from overseas trips compared to September 2022. Specifically, 140,187 residents returned home in September 2023, up from 122,450 the previous year.

Greece was the top destination for these travelers, with 37.1% of returnees having visited there. The United Kingdom, Italy, and Russia were also popular, with respective return percentages of 8.2%, 4.7%, and 4.0%.

Most Cypriot residents (76.1%) traveled for leisure purposes, while 19.7% embarked on business trips. Educational travel and other reasons constituted 2.5% and 1.7% of travels, respectively.

Cyprus reported a rise in its annual inflation rate, reaching 4.3% in September 2023, up from 3.1% in August.

Eurostat data showed that the eurozone followed a similar trend with an inflation rate of 4.3% in September, a decrease from the 5.2% in August.

The European Union as a whole also witnessed a decline in inflation, registering at 4.9% in September 2023, a drop from 5.9% in August.

The Netherlands experienced the lowest annual rate at -0.3%, with Denmark and Belgium following at 0.6% and 0.7%, respectively. Conversely, Hungary topped the list with the highest annual rate of 12.2%, trailed by Romania (9.2%) and Slovakia (9.0%).

Interestingly, from August to September, twenty-one Member States observed a fall in their annual inflation rates. Only one state saw it remain unchanged, while five, including Cyprus, experienced an increase.

Breaking down the contributors to September's inflation in the euro area: services led the way, adding 2.05 percentage points. This was followed by food, alcohol & tobacco (+1.78 points), non-energy industrial goods (+1.06 points), and energy, which actually reduced the overall rate by 0.55 points.