The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 1.26% in January, more than double the variation recorded in December of last year, according to data released on Wednesday (11) by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). The rise occurred in a context marked by logistical constraints caused by the floods that affected the country.
According to the report, Mozambique “recorded a price increase of 1.26%” compared to the previous month. The main pressure came from the food and non-alcoholic beverages category, which continues to significantly influence the overall price level.
Among the products that contributed most to the increase were coconut, up 53%, lettuce (29.6%), cabbage (17.2%), tomato (16.3%), onion (14.8%), charcoal (9.2%), and dried fish (3.4%). “These contributed approximately 0.83 percentage points to the total monthly variation,” the CPI noted.
Price trends were also linked to circulation difficulties between mid-January and early February, during which traffic on National Road Number 1 (N1) was completely blocked due to flooding. The road connects Maputo to the north and south of the country and is crucial for the distribution of goods.
The disruption affected supply chains, reduced the availability of products in markets, and pushed prices higher in several regions. The floods, considered among the worst in recent decades, affected around 725,000 people, mostly in southern Mozambique, and caused at least 27 deaths this year.
In cumulative terms for 2025, inflation stood at 3.23%, below the level recorded in the same period of the previous year. In December, the INE reported that the country had seen “a price increase of 0.49%” compared to November of that year.
According to the same report, throughout 2025, Mozambique “recorded a general price level increase of 3.23%,” driven mainly by the food and non-alcoholic beverages sector and the restaurants, hotels, cafés, and similar sector, contributing 1.87 and 0.70 percentage points, respectively.
Over the past 18 months, the country recorded eight months of CPI declines, four of which occurred between April and July of last year, with price increases resuming from August onward.
In 2024, accumulated inflation stood at 4.15%, below the 5.3% recorded in 2023 and far from the peak of nearly 13% observed in July 2022, a period when the government projected inflation around 7% for 2025 and 2026.
Source: Lusa
