Inflation in the Azores continued to moderate in June 2026, although consumer prices in the Region remained higher than the national average. According to data released by the Azores Regional Statistics Service (SREA), the year-over-year inflation rate fell to 3.55% in June, down 0.24 percentage points from May. Despite this slowdown, inflation in the Azores remained above Portugal’s national rate of 3.22%, while monthly price growth also outpaced the country as a whole.
Over the past twelve months, the average annual inflation rate in the Azores reached 2.35% in June, rising from 2.22% in May. Even with this increase, the regional average remained 0.25 percentage points below the national average, which stood at 2.60%.
Core inflation—excluding unprocessed food products and energy—also continued its gradual upward trend. The twelve-month average reached 1.73%, compared with 1.65% in May, indicating that underlying price pressures remain present across the regional economy.
Unprocessed food prices continued to rise significantly faster than overall inflation, although their average annual increase eased slightly from 6.11% in May to 6.02% in June. In contrast, energy prices accelerated, with their twelve-month average increasing from 4.03% to 4.91%.
Among the various categories of goods and services, restaurants and accommodation services recorded the strongest average annual price increase, rising 7.35% over the past twelve months. Education services followed with an increase of 3.52%, while housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose 3.16%. The largest price declines were recorded in information and communication, where prices fell 2.53%, followed by clothing and footwear, down 0.33%, and alcoholic beverages and tobacco, which declined 0.22%.
Compared with June 2025, consumer prices in the Azores increased 3.55%, placing regional inflation 0.33 percentage points above the national figure of 3.22%, despite the moderation recorded from the previous month.
Core inflation on a year-over-year basis accelerated from 2.31% in May to 2.65% in June, suggesting that underlying inflationary pressures remain resilient even as overall inflation begins to ease. Meanwhile, price growth for unprocessed food slowed considerably, declining from 6.00% to 3.33%. Energy prices also moderated, with annual inflation falling from 17.22% to 13.38%, although energy continues to represent one of the strongest sources of inflationary pressure in the regional economy.
The category experiencing the largest annual price increase was once again restaurants and accommodation services, where prices climbed 10.38% compared with a year earlier. Transportation costs increased 6.61%, while housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose 4.30%. Only two categories registered year-over-year price declines: information and communication, which fell 2.74%, and clothing and footwear, down 0.63%.
Transportation made the largest positive contribution to overall inflation in June, followed by restaurants and accommodation services and food and non-alcoholic beverages. By contrast, lower prices in information and communication, together with clothing and footwear, helped moderate the overall increase in consumer prices.
On a month-to-month basis, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.18% between May and June in the Azores, following a much stronger 1.27% increase during the previous month. Monthly inflation in the Region was also higher than the 0.06% recorded nationally.
Excluding unprocessed food and energy products, monthly prices increased 0.72%, accelerating from 0.40% in May and indicating that underlying inflation remained relatively strong. Restaurants and accommodation services exerted the greatest upward pressure on monthly prices, recording a 5.13% increase, while housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels moved in the opposite direction, declining 1.56% during the month.
Although inflation continues to ease gradually across the Azores, the latest figures suggest that the Region remains under greater price pressure than mainland Portugal. Rising costs in transportation, hospitality, and housing continue to drive inflation, while moderation in food and energy prices has helped slow—but not eliminate—the upward pressure on household expenses.
Based on a story published in Diário dos Açores-Photo from the Facebook page of the Municipality of Ponta Delgada.