# Malawi Inflation Drops to 19.4% in September

> Malawi's inflation falls below 20% for first time since May 2022, but non-food prices remain high.
- Title: Malawi Inflation Drops to 19.4% in September · The Rio Times
- Summary: Malawi's inflation falls below 20% for first time since May 2022, but non-food prices remain high. Malawi's September inflation dropped to 19.4% from 20.0%…
- Keywords: malawi, inflation, reserve bank of malawi, imf, food inflation, non-food inflation, 2026, news, world, politics, Drops, September
- Source: The Rio Times — https://riotimesonline.com/malawi-inflation-19-4-percent-september
- Author: Samuel Ncube
- Published: 2026-10-20T02:36:59+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: malawi, inflation, reserve bank of malawi, imf, food inflation, non-food inflation, 2026, news, world, politics
## Inflation Drops Below 20%
Malawi's year-on-year headline inflation fell to 19.4% in September 2026, the first reading below 20% since May 2022.
## Food Inflation Eases
Food inflation eased to 12.5% from 13.4% in August, while non-food inflation stayed at 31.5%.
## Budget Target Lags
The September rate is 4.4 percentage points above the 15% year-end inflation projection in the 2026/27 national budget.
## Reserve Bank Projects 22% Inflation
The Reserve Bank of Malawi projects average inflation of 22% in 2026, down from 28.4% in 2025 and 32.2% in 2024.
## IMF Forecasts 25% Inflation by 2027
The IMF projects 21.9% inflation in 2026 and 25.0% in 2027, a rebound covered in Malawi Inflation Set to Rebound to 25%.
## Economists Warn of Supply Risks
Economists say fuel, transport and imported-input costs could push food prices up again.
## What's Next for Malawi?
It is unclear whether non-food inflation will fall materially or whether the 15% target is reachable by year-end.
## Key takeaway

Malawi's September inflation dropped to 19.4% from 20.0% in August, but non-food inflation stays at 31.5%.