Belgium revises up inflation forecast; salary indexation triggers expected earlier

The Belgian Federal Planning Bureau raised its inflation forecast for 2026 and 2027 to 3.7% annually, up from 3.6% and 3.4% respectively. As a result, the next pivot index triggers for social benefits and civil servant salaries are now expected in November 2026 and April 2027, earlier than previously projected. This implies faster automatic wage indexation, which could feed into domestic inflation and affect Belgian government finances.