SINGAPORE: Singapore's headline inflation rate rose to 0.4 per cent in May compared to the 0.1 per cent recorded in April, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Monday (Jun 25).
The increase was largely due to a faster pace of price increases across all major categories.
AdvertisementThe cost of private road transport edged up by 0.1 per cent in May, reversing the 0.8 per cent decline in April.
This was due to a faster pace of increase in petrol prices, as well as a smaller year-ago fall in car prices following a rise in Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums.
Services inflation rose to 1.6 per cent in May from 1.3 per cent in April, due to stronger pickup in holiday expenses and airfares, as well as a smaller year-ago decline in telecommunications services fees.
The overall cost of retail items registered a larger 1.3 per cent increase in May compared to the 0.9 per cent rise in the previous month, while food inflation slowed to 1.3 per cent in May from 1.4 per cent in April.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe cost of accommodation fell by 3.2 per cent in May, easing from the 3.6 per cent decline in April. This reflected a larger year-ago increase in the cost of housing maintenance and repairs, as well as a slower pace of decline in housing rentals.
Core inflation, which excludes the costs of accommodation and private road transport, edged up to 1.5 per cent in May from 1.3 per cent in April, reflecting higher services and retail inflation.
The two government agencies said core inflation is expected to rise gradually over the course of 2018 to average in the upper half of the 1 per cent to 2 per cent forecast range, should economic conditions evolve as expected.
Similarly, headline inflation is projected to come in at the upper half of the 0 per cent to 1 per cent forecast range for the full year.
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