Your Dollar Isn’t Stretching as Far as It Did Last March

Buying groceries, filling up your tank, or paying the light bill all cost more than they did a year ago in March, and the latest report on the Consumer Price Index from the Statistical Institute of Belize confirms it.

SIB reported that Belize’s national inflation rate rose to 1.9% in March 2026. The primary drivers were fuel, food, and electricity, three things no household can avoid.

At the pump, regular gasoline rose by nearly a dollar per gallon compared to March 2025, from $12.11 to $13.10. Diesel climbed from $11.81 to $12.26. These higher fuel prices pushed transport costs up by 3.5%, the first increase recorded in over a year.

On store shelves, the numbers have also ticked upwards. Sugar is up 15.5%. A pound of whole fish now costs $9.88, according to the report, up 11.5%. Limes jumped 20.9%. Beef steak rose 6.9%, and stew pork is up 6.4%.

Utility bills are also trending upward. Housing, water, electricity, and fuel costs rose 1.2%, largely due to a tariff adjustment approved by the Public Utilities Commission to Belize Electricity Limited at the start of the year.

Healthcare did not escape either. Health-related costs rose 3.3%, driven by higher fees for doctor visits, medicines, and surgical procedures.

The only category to fall was information and communication, down 0.8%, due to cheaper mobile phones.