Cost of Living Jumps
The cost of a basic basket of goods in Syria reached about 2,171,139 Syrian pounds (SYP) in May 2026, a 10 percent rise compared with February 2026. The increase came even as the US dollar (USD) lost ground against the pound over the same period.
Prices rose unevenly by region, climbing roughly 9 percent in central and southern areas and about 8 percent in the northeast.
Food and Essentials
Food costs rose 8.8 percent nationwide, with increases of 7.8 percent in central and southern regions and 5.4 percent in the northeast. Non-food items climbed more steeply, up 12.2 percent across the country and as much as 13.8 percent in central and southern areas.
Essential services drove much of the strain. A 24-kilogram gas cylinder refill reached 144,726 pounds, up 15.8 percent, while water-tanker delivery rose 19 percent nationally and 40 percent in the northeast.
Pressure on Merchants
The squeeze is felt on both sides of the counter. In a survey of traders, 57 percent reported operational obstacles and 47 percent pointed to higher supplier costs as their main challenge.
About 62 percent of merchants said their customers were facing financial difficulties, a sign that household budgets are absorbing the bulk of the increases.
An Uneven Map
The data point to a country where price pressures vary sharply by geography, shaped in part by which currency dominates locally. Northern areas tied to the Turkish lira tracked a different path from regions where the Syrian pound prevails.
For households, the headline figure is stark: the basic basket now tops 2.17 million pounds, and the steepest jumps hit the fuel and water that families cannot do without.