Qatar: Inflation is muted in March
Latest reading: Consumer prices rose 0.1% annually in March, following February’s 0.4% drop in consumer prices. March’s reading was the highest inflation rate since December 2024. Looking at the details of the release, food prices picked up slightly in March after shrinking at one of the sharpest paces on record in February. Import prices will have been stoked by a weaker U.S. dollar, to which Qatar’s currency is pegged.
Annual average inflation was unchanged at February’s 0.6% in March.
Finally, consumer prices dropped 0.84% in March over the previous month, swinging from February’s 0.41% increase.
Outlook: Government subsidies will keep price pressures zipped up this year, with inflation unlikely to differ significantly from last year in the absence of external shocks to the supply of essential imports such as food.