Belgium’s annual inflation rose to 1.65% in March 2026, up from 1.45% in February.
Despite the uptick, energy prices fell by 4.41%, although less pronounced than the 7.89% drop recorded in the previous month.
Similarly, deflation eased for natural gas (-14.1% vs. -14.7%), while motor fuel prices rose by 11.9%.
Inflation was primarily driven by stronger price growth in transport, which accelerated to 5.0% from 1.6%, followed by clothing and footwear (3.3% versus 1.0%), recreation and culture (5.3% versus 4.5%), and health (6.6% versus 6.5%).
Downward pressures came mainly from housing and utilities (-3.0% versus -2.2%) and food (-0.9% versus 0.7%).
Meanwhile, inflation slowed for restaurants and hotels (4.3% versus 5.0%) and were unchanged for furnishings (0%) and education (2.4%).
On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased by 0.12%, down from an increase of 0.54% in the previous month.