Spain’s inflation holds at 4.9% as lower motor fuel prices offset pressure from gas and heating costs

Preliminary figures released by the National Statistics Institute (INE) on Friday showed that inflation was unchanged from September, remaining at its highest level since February 2023, when the annual rate stood at 6%.

The steady annual figure did not mean prices stopped rising. Consumer prices increased by 0.6% compared with September, double the previous month’s 0.3% rise. It was the ninth consecutive monthly increase.

Core inflation, which excludes energy and unprocessed food, also held steady at 3.1%. That leaves the underlying measure at its highest level since March 2024, when it stood at 3.3%. ALSO READ: Bank of Spain lifts growth forecast to 2.6% but warns of housing shortfall and higher energy bills.

Different pressures across the shopping basket

Motor fuels and lubricants were the main restraint on October’s annual inflation rate. Their prices fell more sharply during the month than they had in October 2025, reducing their contribution to the overall figure.

Food and non-alcoholic drinks, together with clothing, also helped contain inflation. Prices in these categories continued to increase, but by less than in the same month last year.

Other spending categories worked in the opposite direction. Gas prices rose more sharply than a year earlier, while liquid fuels, including heating oil, became more expensive after falling in October 2025.

Package holidays also added upward pressure to the annual comparison, even though their prices fell during October. The decline was smaller than the reduction recorded in the same month last year.

Spain’s harmonised inflation rate, calculated using the methodology that allows comparisons across the European Union, edged down by 0.1 percentage points to 4.9%.

Fuel tax cuts face further scrutiny

October’s figures cover the first month of the government’s latest extension of measures intended to cushion households and businesses from the economic consequences of the war in Iran.

The September package introduced a reduction in hydrocarbons tax equivalent to 20 cents per litre for both unleaded petrol and diesel throughout October, according to Spain’s Tax Agency. ALSO READ: Spain to cap household gas price rise at 15% as energy costs climb ahead of winter.

The intervention comes amid sustained pressure on energy prices from the Middle East conflict. The prolonged disruption has complicated the inflation outlook and prompted national and international institutions to raise forecasts for price growth. ALSO READ: As fuel prices surge in Spain amid war in Iran, economy minister vows to ‘protect citizens, businesses and workers’.

Although October’s headline rate stopped climbing, the preliminary figures alone do not establish how much of that outcome can be attributed to the government’s measures. The detailed breakdown will provide a clearer picture of movements in individual fuel prices.

Those figures will also matter for the level of support available in December. The decree provides for the 20-cent tax reduction to apply to petrol or diesel that records an annual price increase of more than 15% in October. The safeguard is linked to the inflation rate for the individual fuel, rather than the overall consumer price index. 

The INE is due to publish October’s final inflation figures and the full breakdown by spending category on 13 November.