New official data published by the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) confirms that the country’s overall consumer inflation hit 4.1% year-over-year in July 2026, with steep increases in fuel, housing and food costs accounting for the vast majority of the upward price pressure.
The national Consumer Price Index (CPI), a key benchmark for tracking broad price changes across the economy, reached 125.3 in July this year, up from 120.4 in the same month of 2025. A breakdown of price shifts across sectors shows that three core categories – transport, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, and food and non-alcoholic beverages – combined to contribute more than 75% of July’s total inflation. Notably, insurance and financial services were the only segments of the consumer basket that recorded no price increase over the 12-month period.
Of all measured categories, transport saw the sharpest annual acceleration, climbing 12.4% year-over-year, with the entire increase almost exclusively traced to spiking fuel costs. Per-gallon prices for all major fuel grades jumped dramatically: diesel rose the most, adding $2.98 to reach $14.32 per gallon, while premium gasoline increased by $2.33 to hit $15.54 per gallon, and regular gasoline added $1.91 to settle at $13.77 per gallon. Beyond fuel, passenger transport services – including local bus and taxi fares as well as international air travel – also saw a double-digit increase of 15.5% over the year.
The housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels category recorded a 3.9% annual increase, driven primarily by higher residential rental rates and new utility tariffs that took effect earlier in 2026. Average monthly bills for households have risen in line with these changes: a typical home using 225 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month now pays $91.50, up from $84.25 a year earlier, while a household consuming 4,500 gallons of water monthly now pays $91.13, compared to $86.38 12 months prior. A 100-pound cylinder of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), commonly used for residential cooking, has also increased by $7.44 to reach $137.54.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages recorded a more modest 1.9% annual increase, though key staple products saw much steeper jumps. The overall meat and poultry segment rose 4.6%, with ground beef alone climbing 11.8% to $8.49 per pound. Sugar recorded a 16.4% price increase, rising from $1.02 to $1.26 per pound, while bread and bakery products went up 1.8%, and grapes increased 10.3% to $11.11 per pound. Despite these broad increases, a handful of fresh produce items saw price declines: tomatoes dropped 19.9%, grapefruits fell 24.7%, and limes decreased 9.6% year-over-year.
Other consumer segments also recorded moderate price gains: health care costs rose 7% amid higher hospital admission and surgical fees, clothing and footwear went up 3.3%, and restaurants and accommodation services increased 3.4% annually.
Inflation rates also varied significantly across Belize’s municipalities. The San Ignacio/Santa Elena municipal area recorded the country’s highest July inflation rate at 5.3%, with above-average price increases across transport, rent, food, medical services and clothing. In contrast, San Pedro Town recorded the lowest national inflation rate at 3.0%, supported by smaller-than-average increases in taxi and sea transport fares, restaurant services, LPG and medical costs.
Between June and July 2026, national consumer prices remained largely unchanged, with a marginal overall decrease of 0.02% that signals short-term price stability after months of steady increases. A 0.3% month-over-month rise in food costs, driven by higher prices for fresh vegetables and meat, was fully offset by a 0.5% drop in transport costs, which followed a $1.01 per gallon reduction in diesel prices during July.
Looking at the full-year trend through the first seven months of 2026, Belize’s cumulative year-to-date inflation stands at 2.7% compared to the same period in 2025. As with the July data, the same three core categories of transport, food and non-alcoholic beverages, and housing-related utilities contribute nearly three-quarters of the total cumulative price increase so far this year.