Inflation rises to 3.4% in July/ Food, rent and transportation add pressure on prices
Inflation in Albania continued to accelerate in July, rising further above the 3% level and increasing pressure on household budgets. According to figures, inflation has exceeded the Bank of Albania's target of 3% for two months.
According to INSTAT data, the annual inflation rate reached 3.4% in July 2026, up from 2.5% in the same month a year earlier. Compared to June, when inflation was 3.2%, the pace of price growth accelerated by 0.2 percentage points. Meanwhile, on a monthly basis, consumer prices increased by 0.2%.
The main pressure continues to come from food and housing costs, but the impact of transport also increased significantly in July. The “Food and non-alcoholic beverages” group made the largest contribution to inflation, with 1.18 percentage points, while the “Rent, water, electricity, gas and other fuels” group contributed with 0.83 percentage points. Transport made another strong contribution, of 0.52 percentage points.
The data show that most of the pressure on prices continues to be related to basic household expenses.
However, the strongest development in July was transportation. Compared to July last year, prices in this group increased by 8%, the highest rate among all categories. It was followed by “Entertainment, sports and culture” with a 6% increase, “Insurance and financial services” with a 4.5% increase, while costs related to rent, water, electricity and gas increased by 4.1%. Food prices were 3.5% higher than a year earlier.
On a monthly basis, transportation also recorded the strongest growth. Prices in this group rose by 4.7% compared to June alone, while the costs of rent, water, electricity and gas increased by 0.6%. In contrast, food fell by 0.5% within the month, while clothing and footwear by 1.3%.
In annual terms, only two categories recorded price decreases, clothing and footwear with a 1.8% decrease and information and communication, with a 0.9% decrease.
The data show that inflationary pressures have strengthened in recent months. From 3.2% in June, inflation rose to 3.4% in July, while the structure of price increases shows that the pressure does not come from just one category. Food continues to have the largest weight, housing costs remain high and transportation has emerged as the fastest growing factor.
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