Malawi: Taxes less subsidies on products (constant LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Malawi's taxes less subsidies on products (constant LCU) rose 1.7% on 2024 (from 489.46 billion to 497.58 billion).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2006 to 2024), the average change was +48.1% and a typical year strayed about 201.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 878.9% in 2006 and the biggest yearly fall was 20.9% in 2008. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 11.35 billion a year. A straight line explains 75% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 531.75 billion for 2028. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2023 to 2025 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 12.48 billion, against 43.03 billion for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2025, Malawi had the 40th highest value of the 152 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Malawi in the 2025 ranking

• Algeria — 37th of 152: 668.49 billion
• Sweden — 38th of 152: 580.5 billion
• Czechia — 39th of 152: 576.51 billion
• Gabon — 41st of 152: 487.28 billion
• Niger — 42nd of 152: 475.2 billion
• South Africa — 43rd of 152: 457.89 billion

What this measures

Taxes less subsidies on products are taxes payable per unit of a good or service. This indicator is expressed in constant prices, meaning the series has been adjusted to account for price changes over time. The reference year for this adjustment varies by country. This series is expressed in local currency units.

All 21 values

Taxes less subsidies on products (constant LCU) in nearby economies

• Angola — 107.63 billion (2025)
• Benin — 1.17 trillion (2025)
• Botswana — 8.4 billion (2025)
• Burkina Faso — 1.07 trillion (2025)
• Burundi — 271.73 billion (2025)
• Cabo Verde — 48.77 billion (2025)
• Cameroon — 2.12 trillion (2025)
• Central African Republic — 93.5 billion (2025)
• Chad — 399.13 billion (2025)
• Comoros

More economic policy & debt data for Malawi

• Services, value added (constant 2015 US$) — US$6.68 billion (2025)
• Services, value added (constant LCU) — 4.34 trillion (2025)
• Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices (constant 2015 US$) — US$11.42 billion (2025)
• Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices (constant LCU) — 7.6 trillion (2025)
• GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$12.18 billion (2025)
• GDP (constant LCU) — 8.09 trillion (2025)
• GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$548.16 (2025)
• GDP per capita (constant LCU) — 364,283 (2025)
• Services, value added (annual % growth) — 2.15% (2025)
• GDP (annual % growth) — 1.89% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Malawi's taxes less subsidies on products (constant LCU)?

497.58 billion in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2005?

It is up 1,221% from 37.66 billion in 2005 (13.78% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 497.58 billion in 2025 and the lowest 37.66 billion in 2005.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NY.TAX.NIND.KN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks; National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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