Saudi Inflation Stays at 1.8% in August as Housing Costs Climb
Annual consumer price growth held at 1.8% for a fourth month, GASTAT said, with rents and housing the largest single contributor.
Tariq Benali Tariq Benali covers business and corporate news across the UAE and MENA for Anecdoted, tracking the deals, leadership moves and regulatory shifts behind the region's companies. tariq@anecdoted.com
Saudi Arabia's annual inflation rate held at 1.8% in August, the fourth consecutive month at that level, according to figures the General Authority for Statistics released on Tuesday.
Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels rose 3.9% from a year earlier, the heaviest single weight on the index, adding 0.8 percentage points to the headline rate. Actual rents inside that division also advanced 3.9%, so accommodation remained the largest contributor to inflation. No other division came close: food and transport each chipped in 0.3 percentage points.
Food and beverage prices were 1.4% higher year on year. Transport costs rose 2%.
Other divisions posted firmer gains. Personal care, social protection and other goods and services climbed 3.5%, lifted by a 13.3% increase in other personal effects and a 14.4% jump in jewelry and watches. Entertainment, sports and culture prices rose 2.8%, and holiday packages were up 4.7%.
Two categories moved the other way. Furniture, home appliances and periodic home maintenance fell 0.6%, while clothing and footwear slipped 0.5%.
Through much of 2026 the annual rate has sat inside a narrow band of 1.7% to 1.8%, with housing costs supplying the upward pressure.
Monthly moves
Measured against July, consumer prices rose 0.1% in August, leaving the index only marginally changed from the previous month. Transport prices increased 0.6%. Personal care, social protection and other goods and services rose 0.8%, and insurance and financial services added 0.5%. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels were up 0.2%, echoing a similar monthly rise in actual housing rents.
Those increases were partly cancelled out elsewhere. Food and beverage prices dipped 0.1% on the month, and restaurants and accommodation services fell 0.4%.
Energy risk in the background
The inflation reading arrives at a moment of heightened risk to Saudi energy infrastructure. Iran-backed Yemen's Houthis and Iraqi militias have carried out attacks, and the Kingdom closed its East-West oil pipeline as a precaution on September 10. That closure adds pressure to crude flows at a time of broader concern about regional energy supplies.
What the index measures
GASTAT's consumer price index follows a fixed basket of 582 goods and services. The weights are drawn from the 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey and from other data on household consumption. In August 2025 the agency introduced a revised methodology, widening its geographic and retail coverage and folding in extra sources for price collection.
