Serbia's Inflation Slows to 2.7% as Food Prices Ease
Serbia's Statistical Office reports annual inflation of 2.7 percent in June, the lowest in several months, with food and non-alcoholic beverages falling 0.6 percent month-on-month.
- Annual inflation in June stands at 2.7 percent and monthly inflation at 0.2 percent, according to Serbia's Statistical Office.
- Food and non-alcoholic beverage prices fell 0.6 percent month-on-month, while recreation and culture rose about 5 percent.
- Compared with May, when inflation stood at 3.5 percent, the pace of price growth has slowed markedly.
- The average net wage reaches around 1,038 euros, with real growth of 11.5 percent year-on-year.
Annual inflation in June stands at 2.7 percent, Serbia’s Statistical Office reported, bringing the rate to its lowest level in several months. On a monthly basis prices rose 0.2 percent, while compared with December 2025 consumer prices are 2.6 percent higher.
The figure matters because of its trajectory: in May the annual rate was 3.5 percent, so the June reading confirms the slowdown that the National Bank of Serbia flagged through the spring as its base scenario. This is a return within the target corridor rather than a one-off jump that would call for a shift in monetary policy.
The composition of the June basket shows where pressure has eased and where it has held. Food and non-alcoholic beverages, the group with the heaviest weight in the consumer price index, fell 0.6 percent from May. Within that group the sharpest decline came from fruit and nuts, whose prices are 9.3 percent lower year-on-year. Seasonal supply and last year’s base are the main drivers there.
Why did food get cheaper now?
The answer is a mix of season and statistical base. The June harvest and the arrival of domestic fruit and vegetables routinely push down the prices of fresh produce, and this time the effect was amplified by a high base in the same month last year, when prices were considerably higher. When current prices are compared against such a high point a year earlier, the annual rate falls mechanically.
That does not mean price increases have vanished. The largest rise in June came in the recreation and culture group, around 5 percent, partly a seasonal effect of summer services, travel and tickets. Service prices are generally stickier than goods prices: once raised, they are slower to come back down, so this item remains a factor keeping headline inflation above zero even after food prices fell.
For household budgets, the relationship between prices and wages is decisive. The average net wage reaches around 1,038 euros, with real growth of 11.5 percent year-on-year, meaning pay is rising faster than prices. Real wage growth alongside an inflation rate of 2.7 percent leaves room for stronger purchasing power, provided the slowdown in food prices does not prove temporary.
What happens to prices for the rest of the year?
Risks remain on the side of energy and services. The decree capping retail margins, which pushed food prices down over recent months, is no longer in force to the same extent, so part of the pressure is shifting to market-set pricing. If rising service prices continue to offset falling goods prices, the headline rate could stabilize around its current level rather than keep declining.
Even so, the June reading of 2.7 percent sends a clear signal: the price pressures that marked recent months are gradually easing, and for the first time this year domestic consumers feel that their basket of staple goods is not climbing week after week. The question that remains is whether you will feel that relief in your own wallet at the end of the month.
