Cyprus recorded a 3.5 per cent year-on-year increase in agricultural output prices in the second quarter of 2026, making it the third-highest increase in the European Union, according to Eurostat data published on Thursday.

The increase in Cyprus followed a broader decline across the EU, where the average price of agricultural output fell by 5.8 per cent compared with the second quarter of 2025.

It was the third consecutive quarter of decline in EU agricultural output prices, according to Eurostat.

Only Croatia and Malta recorded stronger increases than Cyprus, with agricultural output prices rising by 3.9 per cent in both countries.

The figures placed Cyprus among just seven EU countries where agricultural output prices increased on an annual basis during the quarter.

Output prices fell in 20 EU countries, with the sharpest declines recorded in Denmark, where prices dropped by 17.2 per cent, followed by Ireland at 16.2 per cent.

Latvia and Estonia both recorded declines of 14.5 per cent, while prices fell by 14.2 per cent in both Luxembourg and Lithuania.

The contrasting performance highlighted a significant divergence in agricultural price developments across the EU during the quarter.

At the same time, agricultural input prices rose across every EU country in the second quarter.

Input prices cover goods and services consumed in agricultural production that are not related to investment, including energy, fertilisers and feedingstuffs.

Across the EU, the average price of these inputs increased by 4.7 per cent year-on-year.

This represented a reversal from the period of relative price stability seen throughout 2025 and into the first quarter of 2026.

Lithuania recorded the strongest increase in agricultural input prices, at 16.4 per cent, followed by Romania at 11.7 per cent and Latvia at 9.7 per cent.

At the other end of the scale, Hungary and Portugal recorded increases of 1.2 per cent each, while Malta recorded a 1.5 per cent rise.

Cyprus therefore stood out for recording higher agricultural output prices while facing the broader EU-wide increase in input costs.

The data suggested that agricultural producers in Cyprus experienced a different price environment from producers in most other EU countries, where falling output prices were accompanied by rising costs for goods and services used in production.

The figures cover the second quarter of 2026 and compare agricultural prices with the corresponding period of 2025.