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Original article: Alza de combustibles le mete bencina a la inflación y complica a Kast

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded a monthly variation of 1.0% in March 2026, as reported by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) this Wednesday. This result—driven by the sharp increase in gasoline prices—means that inflation has accumulated 1.4% for the year and 2.8% over twelve months.

This represents the highest monthly increase recorded in over a year, following a 1.1% increase reported in January 2025. Additionally, this figure exceeds forecasts from the Monetary Policy Report (IPoM), which anticipated a 0.75% increase for the period.

According to the INE report, in the third month of the year, ten of the thirteen divisions comprising the CPI basket had positive impacts on the monthly variation, while the other three showed declines.

Among the divisions with the greatest price increases is transportation, which rose by 2.6% and contributed 0.320 percentage points (pp.) to the indicator.

The report noted monthly increases in six of its eleven categories, with the most significant being fuels for personal vehicles (8.7%), contributing 0.285 pp.

This follows a historic rise in gasoline prices due to the decision by José Antonio Kast’s government to not apply the Fuel Price Stabilization Mechanism (Mepco), which aims to mitigate drastic fluctuations in international fuel prices.

Of the 25 products that make up the division, 16 experienced price increases, notably gasoline (8.2%), which contributed 0.234 pp. to the overall indicator and accumulated a 3.5% increase by the third month of the year.

The other division that significantly impacted the CPI increase was education, with a 5.5% increase and a contribution of 0.240 pp.

«The rest of the divisions with positive variations collectively contributed 0.429 pp., reinforcing the overall increase in the indicator,» stated the INE.

Inflation Poses Challenges for Kast

The 1.0% monthly variation recorded in March complicates José Antonio Kast’s administration. According to Carolina Grunwald, chief economist at Prudential AGF, «this is a high, concerning figure.»

She explained that when you add March’s increase to what is expected for April, over two months, we will see more than one and a half points increase in inflation compared to what was expected in December.

«This seems to me to be a significant alert,» she warned.

In an interview with CNN Chile, the economist indicated that the surge in fuel prices—especially gasoline—was the primary driver of the IPC increase in March.

According to her explanation, the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran triggered a rise in oil prices, a situation that quickly transferred to internal prices, alongside changes made to the Mepco parameters by Kast’s administration.

«It is much stronger than we expected at the beginning of March. When the war began, prices spiked, and we thought, ‘this is going to take time to transfer,’ then came this Mepco change, and that’s when projections began to rise significantly,” Grunwald argued.

Inflation projections for April will need to take into account the impact of the modification to the Mepco, which began on March 26, leading to what is termed the gasoline price hike, which resulted in an increase of $370 per liter for 93-octane gasoline and up to $580 for diesel.

However, the ramifications of the far-right leader’s economic decisions extend beyond just fuel costs. The increase in gasoline prices directly impacts daily transport, but also raises the costs of goods and services, exerting pressure on the cost of living and inflation.

La entrada Rising Fuel Prices Fuel Inflation and Challenge Kast’s Administration se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.