Cheaper garments help ease inflation rate in January

The annual rate of inflation fell by 0.2 percentage points between December and January, with cheaper garment prices among the biggest drivers, according to the National Statistics Office.

In January 2026, the inflation rate as measured by the retail price index stood at 2.5%, down from 2.7% in December 2025.

The rates were highest in the ‘other goods and services’ (4.5%) and food (3.6%) category, while the lowest rates were registered in clothing and footwear (-2.3%) and water, electricity, gas and fuels (0%).

Food price increases were the largest upward contribution to the overall inflation rate in January, largely due to higher prices of take-aways, according to the NSO.

The second and third largest contributions were measured in the ‘other goods and services’ index and the recreation and culture index, driven by higher prices of jewellery and hire and leasing of recreational and sports events.

The downward contribution to overall inflation was registered in the clothing and footwear index, reflecting lower prices of garments.

The ‘other goods and services’ index registered the highest annual inflation rate at 4.5%. Jewellery, watches and other articles registered an annual rate of 22.8%, while non-durable houshold goods registered a 2.3% annual rate.

Other categories that registered annual rate increases include veterinary services and domestic services including pet food (1.9%) and financial services (0.6%).

The clothing and footwear index registered the lowest annual inflation rate at -2.3%, of which clothing registered an annual rate of -2.1% and footwear registered an annual rate of -3.1%.