Saudi Arabia: Inflation ebbs in April from the prior month
Latest reading: Consumer prices increased 1.7% on a year-on-year basis in April, following a 1.8% increase in the prior month. April’s reading was the weakest since January 2025.
Relative to the previous month’s data, there were reduced price pressures for clothing and footwear (-0.3% in annual terms vs -0.1% in March), housing and utilities (+3.8% vs +3.9% in March) and recreation and entertainment (+1.8% vs +2.0% in March). In contrast, there were more notable price pressures for food and non-alcoholic beverages (+0.6% vs +0.3% in March) and transport (+1.0% vs +0.9% in March).
Lastly, consumer prices were up 0.24% in April on a month-on-month basis, following a 0.29% increase in the previous month.
Panelist insight: On their inflation forecasts, Fitch analysts said:
“We have maintained our 2026 forecast for average inflation at 2.1% as we expect easing rent pressures to offset higher prices in other components. A key risk to our view would be a hike in pump fuel prices and/or disruption to Red Sea access.”