Malawi Inflation eases to 24.9 Percent in January 2026

The overall price level of goods and services moderated to 24.9 percent in January 2026 from 26.0 percent recorded in December 2025, representing a 1.1 percentage point decline. Food inflation declined to 22.1 percent, down from 26.5 percent in the previous month, while Non-Food inflation rose to 29.8 percent from 25.2 percent over the same period.

Food prices remain the major driver of inflation

The slowdown in inflation rate in January 2026 was largely attributed to a slower increase in food prices compared to the same period last year. Although food prices rose in both periods, the increase in January 2026 was more moderate than in January 2025, resulting in a lower Year-on-Year inflation rate for the month.

Table 1: Inflation rates and CPIs for January 2025 and 2026

Food prices continue to be the main driver of inflation in Malawi. During the month, prices of key food items particularly cereals such as maize, moderated, while a notable decline was observed in vegetable prices. These developments contributed to a slower increase in the food index compared to recent months.

An analysis of food price movements over the past twelve months shows that prices rose at a slower rate in January 2026 than in January 2025, resulting in a lower Year-on-Year food inflation rate.

Non-food inflation rate increases to 29.8 percent

In contrast, the non-food index recorded a significant increase over the same period, mainly driven by higher prices of petrol, diesel and electricity under the Housing, Water, and Electricity category. Additional upward pressure was observed in transport fares under the Transportation category, largely due to the fuel price hike. Overall, the growth in the non-food index exceeded that recorded in the corresponding period in 2025, leading to an increase in the Non-Food Year-on-Year inflation rate.

Year-on-Year inflation rate

In general, the increase in the overall price index in January 2026 was lower than that observed in January 2025, resulting in a decline in the Year-on-Year inflation rate to 24.9 percent in January 2026 from the 26.0 percent recorded in December 2025.

Month-to-month inflation reaches 3.7 percent

In January 2026, the national month-to-month inflation rate, reflecting the overall percentage change in the general price level of goods and services between   December 2025 and January 2026, reached 3.7 percent from the previous month. The food prices increased to 2.4 percent from 3.2 percent in December 2025 while non-food inflation increased to 6.2 percent from 2.6 percent over the same period.

In urban areas, the monthly inflation rate reached 4.7 percent, comprising a 2.3 percent increase in food prices and an 8.1 percent rise in non-food prices.

In contrast, rural areas experienced a lower inflation rate of 3.3 percent, mainly due to a 5.0 percent rise in non-food prices, while food inflation registered a more modest 2.4 percent increase.