Consumer prices in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, and four other cities topped 6 percent in the fourth quarter, growing faster than the average of 16 cities, as food, rent and utility costs surged, official data showed.

Saudi Arabia's dollar peg means its ability to fight inflation - which hit a record 6.5 percent in December - is limited because it has to mirror US interest rates at a time when the United States is lowering them to ward off recession.

Inflation in the central city of Hai'l, which has a population of about 270,000, grew the fastest in the country of 25 million people, up 8.1 per cent during the three months to December 31, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama) said on its Web site.-Reuters