Inflation in Panama recorded a monthly variation of 0.1% in December 2025, driven mainly by the increase in food and non-alcoholic beverages, public services, and the communications sector, reported the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Inec) this Friday. In its report on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), Inec did not detail the annual inflation rate or the accumulated annual figure, due to the implementation of a new IPC reference base (2024=100) starting in September. The 0.1% increase is due to price increases in the food and non-alcoholic beverages group (0.8%); housing, water, electricity, and gas (0.2%); as well as information and communication, recreation, sports and culture, restaurants and hotels, and personal care and social protection, all with increases of 0.1%. In contrast, price drops were reported in transport (-0.3%); alcoholic beverages and tobacco, and clothing and footwear (-0.2%); in addition to furniture and household equipment, and health, both with -0.1%. According to the forecasts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Panama will close 2025 with an inflation rate of -0.1%. The last available annual data corresponds to August 2025, when inflation stood at -0.4%, the same percentage as the accumulated figure up to that month. For 2024, inflation closed with an annual accumulated rate of 0.7% and an annual rate of -0.2%, while in 2023 it was 1.5% accumulated and 1.9% annual, and in 2022 it was 2.1% and 2.9%, respectively.
