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Ñito Salas Economy Malaga grocery prices surge 3.9% year-on-year ahead of Iran war fuel spikeHow the 2026 Middle East conflict could worsen Malaga's record food inflation
Friday, 13 March 2026, 12:31 | Updated 12:43h.
The annual cost of groceries in Malaga province jumped by nearly 4% year-on-year in February.
Recorded just as the geopolitical situation shifted with US operations in Iran, these figures represent a two-year peak for the region.
Analysts warn that the true impact of the conflict - including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz - will likely trigger a much sharper spike in March data.
The closure of the strait has already sent Brent crude prices towards $120 a barrel, directly impacting the transport costs of essential goods arriving in the province.
The publication of March data will take place at the end of the month for Spain as a whole and in the middle of next month for the different provinces.
Year-on-year vs monthly trends
The 3.9% figure represents the annual increase compared to February 2025. This steady upward trend in the cost of a standard shopping basket has been building since the start of the year:
January 2026: 3.5% (The highest annual rate since mid-2024).
February 2026: 3.9% (A fresh two-year record).
Monthly change: On a month-to-month basis, prices rose by 0.4% between January and February.
Even before this happens, however, the residents of Malaga province know that the price of their shopping baskets has been increasing since January, when it stood at 3.5%, the highest since mid-2024. In February, the figure rose to 3.9%, making groceries the most expensive in two years.
The CPI for food and non-alcoholic beverages recorded a higher increase in seven Spanish provinces last month: Álava (5.5%), Ourense (close to 4.9%), Guipúzcoa, Valladolid, Vizcaya, Ávila and Palencia (all over 4%). In Spain as a whole, these essential goods recorded an increase of 3.2%.
With this rise in groceries, the general price index stood at 2.6% in Malaga, 0.1% more than in January. Meanwhile, in Spain, the CPI stood at 2.3% in February, the same as the previous month.
Although food rose at the fastest pace in two years in Malaga, the general index in the province registered its most moderate increase since the autumn of 2024.