Malaysia: Inflation accelerates in May from April
Latest reading: Consumer prices rose 2.0% on a year-on-year basis in May, following a 1.9% rise in the prior month. May’s reading was the strongest since July 2023.
Relative to the prior month’s data, there were higher price pressures for food and non-alcoholic beverages (+1.4% in annual terms vs +1.2% in April), housing and utilities (+1.2% vs +1.1% in April) and recreation services and culture (+1.1% vs +0.9% in April). In contrast, price pressures reduced for transportation in May (+3.8% vs +4.1% in April).
Finally, consumer prices increased 0.15% in May in month-on-month terms, following a 0.37% rise in the previous month.