Norway’s annual inflation rate accelerated to 3.6% in January 2026 from 3.2% in December, well above the expected 3.1%. This marks the highest reading in four months, mainly driven by faster price increases for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (4.3% vs 3.9%), and transport (4.4% vs 2.7%). Inflation also picked up for furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance (1.7% vs 0.3%), recreation, sport and culture (4.3% vs 4.0%), and restaurants and accommodation services (5.8% vs 5.1%). Clothing and footwear turned positive after a prior decline (0.7% vs -1.2%). In contrast, inflation slowed for food and non-alcoholic beverages (4.2% vs 5.3%), alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics (2.8% vs 3.3%), and health (2.7% vs 3.0%). On a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.6%, the most since late July, up from 0.1% in December. The CPI-ATE, which excludes energy and tax effects, rose 3.4% year-on-year, exceeding market expectations of 3% and December’s 3.1%.
