Serbia Inflation Rate Hits Near 5-Year Low

2026-02-19 11:16 By Czyrill Jean Coloma 1 min. read

The annual inflation rate in Serbia slowed to 2.4% in January 2026, compared to market expectations and the prior month's 2.7%.

This marked the lowest reading since March 2021, with the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia starting to use the new International Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) version 2 (COICOP2018) in the calculation of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the internationally comparable Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP).

Consumer deflation continued for food and non-alcoholic beverages (-1% vs -0.9% in December), and prices slipped for transport (-0.4% vs 1.9%).

Moreover, costs moderated for information and communication (1.1% vs 2.3%), health (5.7% vs 5.9%), and alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and narcotics (6.3% vs 6.4%).

In contrast, prices increased at a faster pace for housing and utilities (8.5% vs 7.5%).

On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up to 0.3% from 0.1% in December 2025, matching market expectations.



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Serbia Inflation Rate Hits Near 5-Year Low
The annual inflation rate in Serbia slowed to 2.4% in January 2026, compared to market expectations and the prior month's 2.7%. This marked the lowest reading since March 2021, with the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia starting to use the new International Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) version 2 (COICOP2018) in the calculation of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the internationally comparable Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP). Consumer deflation continued for food and non-alcoholic beverages (-1% vs -0.9% in December), and prices slipped for transport (-0.4% vs 1.9%). Moreover, costs moderated for information and communication (1.1% vs 2.3%), health (5.7% vs 5.9%), and alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and narcotics (6.3% vs 6.4%). In contrast, prices increased at a faster pace for housing and utilities (8.5% vs 7.5%). On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up to 0.3% from 0.1% in December 2025, matching market expectations.
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Serbia Inflation Rate Lowest Since 2021
The annual inflation rate in Serbia edged down to 2.7% in December 2025 from 2.8% in the previous month. This marked the lowest reading since March 2021, mainly driven by ongoing deflation for food and non-alcoholic beverages, which dropped further by 0.9%, after a 0.7% fall in November. Additionally, inflation softened for clothing and footwear (2.2% vs 2.9%), furnishings, household equipment and maintenance (0.3% vs 0.7%), and transport (1.9% vs 2.6%). On the other hand, prices increased at a faster rate for alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics (6.4% vs 4.9%) and recreational and cultural services (2.7% vs 2.4%). On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose modestly by 0.1% in December, following a 0.2% gain in the preceding period.
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The annual inflation rate in Serbia stood at 2.8% in November 2025, unchanged from the previous month. It remained the lowest reading since April 2021, as prices declined for food and non-alcoholic beverages (-0.7% vs 0.3% in October) and slowed for clothing and footwear (2.9% vs 3.2%), furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance (0.7% vs 1.3%), and miscellaneous goods and services (4.3% vs 4.5%). Meanwhile, costs increased at a faster pace for housing and utilities (7.5% vs 7.2%), transport (2.6% vs 1.7%), alcoholic beverages and narcotics (4.9% vs 4.8%), health (5.6% vs 4.8%), communication (2.3% vs 1.4%), recreation and culture (4.5% vs 3.7%), and restaurants and hotels (6.9% vs 6.8%). On a monthly basis, consumer prices eased to 0.2% from 0.5% in October.
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