Senegal Inflation Picks Up to 1.4%

The annual inflation rate in Senegal accelerated to 1.4% in March 2026 from 0.8% in February, marking the highest reading in three months. Main upward pressure came from a sharp rise in food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation (1.7% vs 0.2% in February). Price growth also picked up for alcohol, tobacco and narcotics (10.7% vs 8.7%), health (1.9% vs 1.5%), transport (0.4% vs 0.2%), and personal care and miscellaneous goods (2.6% vs 2.3%). Meanwhile, inflation softened for housing and utilities (0.2% vs 0.7%), furniture and household equipment (1.5% vs 1.8%), clothing and footwear (0.7% vs 0.8%), and recreation, sport and culture (1.2% vs 1.3%). Information and communication remained in deflation but improved slightly (-0.1% vs -0.4%), while education services and restaurants and hotels were stable at 1.0% and 2.7%, respectively. On a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.2%, reversing a 0.2% decline in February.

Senegal's annual inflation rate rose to 0.8% in February 2026, up from 0.4% in January. The heavyweight food index rebounded, rising 0.2% after a 0.5% decline previously. Additional upward pressure came from restaurants and hotels (2.7% versus 2.1%), housing and utilities (0.7% versus 0.4%), health (1.5% versus 1.3%), clothing and footwear (0.8% versus 0.6%), and recreation, sports and culture (1.3% versus 1.0%). Meanwhile, prices slowed for transportation (0.2% versus 0.7%) and continued to fall for communication (-0.4% versus -0.7%). Core consumer prices, excluding energy and fresh produce, rose by 2.5%. On a monthly basis, consumer prices fell 0.2% in February, following a 1.3% decline in the previous month.

Senegal’s annual inflation rate fell sharply to 0.4% in January 2026, marking the lowest reading in eight months and down from 2.8% in the previous month. The slowdown was largely driven by a decline in food and non-alcoholic beverage prices, which fell by 0.5% after rising 4.5% previously. Price pressures also eased across most other categories, including housing and utilities (0.4% vs. 1.2%), transport (0.7% vs. 1.4%), furnishings (1.9% vs. 2.5%), restaurants and hotels (2.1% vs. 3.0%), alcoholic beverages and tobacco (13.4% vs. 17.2%), health (1.3% vs. 1.5%), and recreation and culture (1.0% vs. 1.6%). Meanwhile, inflation in clothing and footwear stood at 0.6%, while education price growth picked up to 1.0% from 0%. Deflation in the communication sector also eased, with prices falling by 0.7% compared with a 1.7% decline in the previous month. On a monthly basis, consumer prices continued to fall for a third consecutive month, declining by 1.3%.