MADRID, Aug 28, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Spain's inflation rate hit 4.3 percent in August, a sharp increase from the 3.6 percent seen in July as energy prices surged due to the war in the Middle East, the national statistics office said Friday.

Inflation was impacted by "fuel and lubricant for personal vehicles that rose, after falling in August 2025," the INE said in a statement.

It also noted that prices for food and non-alcoholic drinks had fallen at a slower rate in August than in the same month last year.

The figure is more than double the European Central Bank's inflation target of two percent, and could put pressure on policy makers to raise interest rates, perhaps as soon as its next governing council meeting starting on September 9.

In June, Spain's central bank forecast that inflation would stand at 3.6 percent this year.

Inflation for the eurozone as a whole reached 2.9 percent in July, and the EU statistics agency Eurostat will publish its initial reading for August on Tuesday.