SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Malaysia’s consumer prices rose by 4.4% year on year in July amid higher food prices, while its producer price index (PPI) grew at a slower pace, official data showed on Monday.
The July consumer price index (CPI) accelerated from the 3.4% year-on-year increase in June, data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) showed.
The food index increased 6.9% and remained as the main contributor to the rise in inflation for the month, it said.
“The inflation for the period of January to July 2022 increased 2.8% as compared to the same period of the previous year. On a monthly basis, the (July 2022) inflation increased 0.4% as compared to June 2022,” the DOSM said.
Malaysia’s July core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 3.4% year on year.
“The increase in Malaysia’s inflation this month was also due to the lower base effect last year as a result of the electricity bill discount from 5% to 40%, according to total usage given to domestic consumers under the National People’s Well-being and Economic Recovery Package (PEMULIH) from July to September 2021,” the DOSM said.
Separately, the country's overall PPI rose by 7.6% year on year in July, easing from the 10.9% expansion in June this year.
The PPI measures the costs of goods at the factory gate.
The manufacturing sector, which is the highest weight in the PPI, posted a 9.9% year-on-year rise in July, down slightly from the 10% expansion in June 2022.