The week in one number: 2.7%: the annual rise in Cape Verde's consumer prices in September, the highest rate since December 2025, with prices up 1.1% from August, according to statistics agency INE.
Cape Verde's consumer prices rose 2.7% year-on-year in September 2026 and 1.1% from August, statistics agency INE said on October 14. Core inflation, excluding energy and unprocessed food, reached 1.5%. The 12-month average inflation rate, which INE uses as its official headline measure, also stood at 1.5%, the agency said.
Analysis: The 2.7% annual rate was the highest since December 2025, when inflation reached 3.3%, and slightly above the central bank BCV's 2.50% policy rate. September's figures, however, precede the 12% rise in gasoline and diesel prices for October reported by Lusa. Import prices were also 25.7% higher than a year earlier, pointing to the possibility of further cost pressure for importers and retailers. The BCV's monetary policy report, scheduled for November 10, should indicate whether the bank now sees a need to adjust interest rates.
Source: INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa: Índice de Preços no Consumidor Nacional - Setembro de 2026, September 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa: IPC Nacional - Setembro de 2026, September 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa IPC - Agosto 2026, August 2026; Banco de Cabo Verde, BCV, Boletim de Estatísticas agosto 2026 (published October 9, 2026), December 2025; Banco de Cabo Verde (BCV), BCV homepage, 'Taxas de Juro' panel, Unchanged since March 2025; latest reported hold 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa ICE - Setembro 2026 (Índice de Preços do Comércio Externo), September 2026; Forbes África Lusófona / Lusa, Forbes África Lusófona (Lusa), citing ARME price tables, October 2026
Prices for goods imported into Cape Verde increased 25.7% year-on-year in September 2026 and 5.9% from August, statistics agency INE said on October 20. Imported construction materials cost 18.9% more than in the previous month, while fuel import prices rose 6.1%. Export prices gained just 3.5% from a year earlier, weakening the country's terms of trade by 17.7%, INE said.
Analysis: Import prices have climbed about 22% since April, by our calculation, while export prices were only 3.5% higher year-on-year, reducing the purchasing power of Cape Verde's exports. Builders and construction-material importers face particularly sharp pressure after an increase of nearly one-fifth in material costs in a month, potentially slowing private projects. Higher import costs can reach retail prices with a delay, raising the risk of further consumer inflation. INE's October import price index, expected around November 20, should indicate whether the surge is easing.
Source: INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa ICE - Setembro 2026 (Índice de Preços do Comércio Externo), September 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Índice de Preços do Comércio Externo - Setembro de 2026, September 2026; Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE Cabo Verde), INE, Nota de imprensa Estatísticas do Comércio Externo - 2º trimestre 2026, Q2 2026
Cape Verde will cut the price of special diesel for semi-industrial and industrial fishing vessels by 10% for three months, with the Fisheries Autonomous Fund reimbursing suppliers up to 5.07mn CVE (€46,000), according to an October 19 government resolution reported by Expresso das Ilhas. The fuel's price almost doubled between January and October, reaching 153.30 CVE (€1.39) per liter, the government said.
Analysis: At October's price, the subsidy cap would fund the discount on roughly 330,000 liters, by our calculation. The 10% reduction would offset only about one-fifth of the 75.10 CVE (€0.68) per-liter increase since January. Fishing operators would therefore still bear most of the extra fuel cost themselves, despite the support, potentially making supplies more expensive for fish canneries, whose output accounts for 79.9% of domestic exports. Industry association APESC called the support insufficient, Expresso das Ilhas reported. The resolution does not specify when the measure begins, so a start on publication would put its expiry around mid-January 2027.
Source: Expresso das Ilhas, citing a government resolution in the Boletim Oficial of October 19, 2026, October 2026-January 2027 and October 2026; Expresso das Ilhas, citing Recenseamento Geral das Pescas 2021, 2021; Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE Cabo Verde), INE, Nota de imprensa Estatísticas do Comércio Externo - 2º trimestre 2026, Q2 2026
Cape Verde's real gross domestic product grew 8.9% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, accelerating from 6.4% in the first quarter, statistics agency INE said on September 30. Investment increased 56.9% in volume and private consumption grew 6.2%. Trade, construction, financial services and agriculture were the main contributors on the production side, INE said.
Analysis: Growth averaged 7.6% in the first half, well ahead of the IMF's February forecast of 5.1% for the whole of 2026, while the second quarter was the strongest since early 2024. INE identified investment as the main driver, even as hotel and restaurant output declined 8.8%, suggesting an expansion driven more by building and inventory accumulation than tourism. Contractors, construction suppliers and their lenders could benefit first. Third-quarter national accounts, due by late December, should reveal whether growth held up as fuel and import costs increased.
Source: INE Cabo Verde, INE, Contas Nacionais Trimestrais - 2º trimestre 2026, Q2 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Contas Nacionais Trimestrais - 2º trimestre 2026 (press note PDF), Q2 2026 and Q1 2026 and H1 2026; International Monetary Fund, IMF Press Release No. 26/036 (2025 Article IV, 7th ECF review, 3rd RSF review), 2026; Ministério das Finanças de Cabo Verde, Ministério das Finanças, Relatório OE 2027, 2027
Foreign direct investment in Cape Verde reached 5.3bn CVE (€48.5mn) in the second quarter of 2026, against 3.2bn CVE (€29.0mn) a year earlier, provisional central bank BCV figures showed. Sal received 3.0bn CVE (€27.3mn), almost entirely for tourism and tourism-related property, while Italian investors contributed 1.4bn CVE (€12.9mn), according to the bank's statistical bulletin.
Analysis: Foreign investment rose 67%, by our calculation, with Sal attracting 56% of the total and four times its year-earlier inflow. That concentration suggests one or a few large tourism developments drove the increase. Because quarterly investment can fluctuate sharply, the 40% rise for the first half offers a steadier measure. Contractors, suppliers of building materials and banks on Sal stand to benefit, consistent with the 35.3% growth in construction output. The BCV's next quarterly external-sector data, expected around December 11, should indicate whether strong inflows persist.
Source: Banco de Cabo Verde, BCV, Boletim de Estatísticas agosto 2026 (published October 9, 2026), Q2 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Contas Nacionais Trimestrais - 2º trimestre 2026 (press note PDF), Q2 2026
Chart of the week
Consumer prices, % change on a year earlier, September 2025–September 2026
July and August are shown as published in the central bank BCV's bulletin, at 1.1% and 0.8%. INE's July release gave 0.4% for July, and its September release implies 1.1% for August. Source: Banco de Cabo Verde, BCV, Boletim de Estatísticas agosto 2026 (monthly statistical bulletin, published 9 Oct 2026), September 2025 and October 2025 and November 2025 and January 2026 and February 2026 and March 2026 and April 2026 and May 2026 and June 2026 and July 2026; Banco de Cabo Verde, BCV, Boletim de Estatísticas agosto 2026 (published October 9, 2026), December 2025; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa IPC - Agosto 2026, August 2026; INE Cabo Verde, INE, Nota de imprensa: Índice de Preços no Consumidor Nacional - Setembro de 2026, September 2026.
Tender of the week
Rehabilitation of four hiking trails in Paúl, Santo Antão (three lots)
Buyer
Integrated Project Coordination Center (CCIP, formerly UGPE)
Scope
Small works to rehabilitate four tourist trails in the municipality of Paúl on Santo Antão island, in three lots that bidders may take separately; national request for quotations under World Bank rules; past performance on CCIP contracts counts.
Value
Not published
Funding
World Bank (IDA credit 71260), Resilient Tourism and Blue Economy Development project (P176981)
Closes
Thursday, November 12, 2026
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In Alama Pro this week
Deep dive: What shorter hotel stays mean for Cape Verde's tourism business
All this week's stories with their workings, across seven areas, from inflation and import prices to second-quarter growth, the fishing-fleet diesel discount, foreign investment on Sal and public debt
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