Abu Dhabi Consumer Prices Ease 0.1% From June to September on SCAD’s New 2024 Base
The Takeaway: Consumer prices in Abu Dhabi eased 0.1% between June and September, as a July fall led by transport outweighed a 0.7% rise in September. The Statistics Centre’s new index, built on 2024 household spending, was 5.5% above its December level. Transport, recreation and food account for 62% of that increase, while education costs did not change this year.
Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi has published its first consumer price figures of 2026 on a new 2024 base, showing prices easing between June and September after a strong first half.
The basket and its weights now follow the 2024 Household Income and Expenditure Survey, an update the centre says aims to reflect changes in household spending patterns. Every month of 2026 is preliminary.
In The Edge’s reading, the third quarter marks a pause after a fast first half. The index rose 2.7% in the first quarter and 2.9% in the second. Between June and September it slipped 0.1%.
Abu Dhabi’s index eases between June and September after rising through the first half
The new index sets the 2024 average at 100. In September it stood at 108.32, up 0.73% on August. That was the largest monthly rise since April.
The peak came in June, at 108.43. July brought a fall of 0.86%, the only monthly decline of the year, and August was almost flat at 0.03%.
On quarterly averages, the index was 0.18% lower in the third quarter than in the second, on The Edge’s calculation from the centre’s index levels.
Measured from December, which the centre’s January change puts at 102.62 on the new base, prices were 5.5% higher by September. Most of that rise came in March and April, when the index gained 1.89% and 1.97%.
Across January to September the index averaged 106.56. Prices therefore ran 6.6% above their 2024 level on average.
Abu Dhabi consumer price index and the UAE national index, 2026
| Month | Abu Dhabi index | Abu Dhabi month on month (%) | UAE month on month (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 102.99 | 0.35 | 0.34 |
| Feb | 103.41 | 0.41 | 0.09 |
| Mar | 105.36 | 1.89 | 1.31 |
| Apr | 107.44 | 1.97 | 1.74 |
| May | 108.07 | 0.59 | 0.58 |
| Jun | 108.43 | 0.33 | 0.41 |
| Jul | 107.50 | -0.86 | n/a |
| Aug | 107.53 | 0.03 | n/a |
| Sep | 108.32 | 0.73 | n/a |
Abu Dhabi index: 2024 = 100, not seasonally adjusted, preliminary. UAE monthly changes are the national statistics centre’s published monthly inflation for its all items index (2024 = 100), available to June 2026.
Transport, recreation and food drive the rise since December
Transport added 1.75 percentage points of the increase since December, on The Edge’s calculation, the largest share of any group. Transport prices rose 13.3% over the period.
The group jumped 9.95% in April alone and then fell 6.79% in July. That July fall took 0.98 percentage points off the headline’s monthly change, more than the index’s whole decline of 0.86%.
Recreation and culture added 0.85 points and food and beverages 0.84 points. Together with transport they account for 62% of the rise since December.
Recreation and culture stands highest of all groups, at 120.77 in September. Furnishings and household equipment rose 11.1% since December, most of it in a jump of 6.58% in May.
Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels carries the largest weight, at 31.57% of the basket. It rose just 2.4% since December and fell 0.58% in September, its steepest monthly decline of the year.
Education costs did not change in any month this year. Health fell 5.3% since December and insurance and financial services 5.9%. The centre notes that July health data were statistically adjusted pending final figures from the relevant authorities.
Clothing and footwear is the only group below its 2024 level, at 95.09. That is despite a rise of 8.3% since December.
In September, recreation and culture contributed 0.37 points to the monthly rise and food 0.29 points. Transport added 0.28 points, while housing subtracted 0.18 points.
Abu Dhabi consumer prices by group, September 2026
| Group | Weight (%) | Index, Sep 2026 | Change since Dec 2025 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transport | 14.02 | 108.92 | 13.31 |
| Recreation and culture | 6.34 | 120.77 | 12.79 |
| Furnishings and household equipment | 5.48 | 112.05 | 11.07 |
| Food and beverages | 9.76 | 110.68 | 8.68 |
| Clothing and footwear | 5.01 | 95.09 | 8.34 |
| Restaurants and hotels | 4.82 | 110.59 | 7.42 |
| Housing, water, electricity, gas and fuels | 31.57 | 108.69 | 2.39 |
| Telecoms | 4.92 | 102.50 | 1.45 |
| Personal care and other goods | 6.79 | 106.67 | 1.44 |
| Tobacco | 0.25 | 103.52 | 0.97 |
| Education | 8.39 | 103.94 | 0.00 |
| Health | 1.81 | 103.14 | -5.33 |
| Insurance and financial services | 0.82 | 107.90 | -5.85 |
| All items | 100.00 | 108.32 | 5.55 |
Index 2024 = 100, preliminary. December 2025 levels are implied by each group’s January change. Groups ranked by change since December. Telecoms is the centre’s communication group, and personal care and other goods is its personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods group.
Abu Dhabi and the national index both rise through June
The Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre’s national index is published to June 2026. Between January and June it rose 4.19%, against 5.29% for Abu Dhabi.
Both indices rose in every month from January to June. Abu Dhabi’s monthly gain was larger in 5 of those 6 months.
The widest gap came in March, when Abu Dhabi rose 1.89% and the national index 1.31%. June was the exception, with the national index up 0.41% against 0.33% for the emirate.
The national series published so far ends in June, so the emirate’s easing between June and September has no federal counterpart yet.
The centre rebuilds its basket on 2024 household spending
The centre’s notice says the index was updated from January 2026, with 2024 adopted as the new base year. The weights represent each item’s share of total household spending, and the notice adds that the update aims to measure price changes more accurately, in line with international statistical standards.
Recreation and culture gained the most weight, rising to 6.34% of the basket from 3.9% in the previous index. Food and beverages lost the most, falling to 9.76% from 12.0%.
The previous index used 2021 as its base. On that index, average inflation for 2025 was 0.3%. The annual rate for December 2025 was 1.5%.
The centre’s new 2026 monthly releases do not give a comparable September year-on-year rate. The previous series uses a different base and basket, so the two are not linked here. The series is not seasonally adjusted, and the figures may be revised within 2 months.
January and February were posted on 8 November and March to September on 9 November. The last edition on the old base covered December 2025.
Figures are from Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi’s monthly consumer price index tables for January to September 2026 (2024 = 100), posted on 8 and 9 November 2026, its December 2025 and 2025 annual tables on the previous 2021 base, and the national all items index and monthly inflation of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre; changes since December, quarterly changes, average levels, contributions since December and the national change from January to June are The Edge’s calculations, with contributions since December built on December 2025 group levels implied on the new basket rather than taken from the centre’s reported monthly contributions.
Sources: Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi, Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre, The Edge.
