• Annual consumer-price inflation slowed to 11.9 % in October, the weakest reading since April, as food and non-food costs both eased.
• Food inflation slipped to 14.1 % and non-food to 8.7 %, trimming the monthly CPI increase to 0.4 %.
• Officials credit a steady 14.5 % policy rate, a firmer kwacha and fresh IMF disbursements for the continued deceleration, though the 6–8 % target band remains distant.

Zambia’s disinflation streak reached a sixth consecutive month in October as the annual consumer-price index rose 11.9 %, down from 12.3 % in September, data released by the Zambia Statistics Agency show. Food inflation eased to 14.1 % from 14.6 % the previous month, while non-food inflation edged down to 8.7 % from 9.0 %. On a monthly basis the CPI gained 0.4 %, the smallest increase since May.

The agency attributed the softer print to three factors: monetary policy that has kept the benchmark rate at 14.5 % since February, a recent appreciation of the kwacha that has dampened import-cost pressures, and the completion of the IMF’s fifth review under the Extended Credit Facility, which unlocked an additional disbursement and stabilised external financing.

With external debt restructuring largely concluded, Treasury officials say the improved fiscal space will allow continued reforms in revenue collection, public-spending rationalisation and governance of the agriculture and energy sectors.

Headline inflation, however, remains above the Bank of Zambia’s 6–8 % target range. The central bank noted that upside risks persist from possible global commodity-price swings and renewed exchange-rate volatility, factors that will determine whether the current moderation can be sustained through the first half of 2026.

Cynthia Ebot Takang