Singapore inflation still stuck in the red despite slight gain in May

CPI edged up to -0.4%.

Singapore’s consumer price index (CPI) edged up to -0.4% in May, a marginal gain compared to the -0.5% in April.

According to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, this was on account of the higher cost of private road transport.

Private road transport cost rose by 1.0%, after falling by 2.1% in April, due to higher Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums and a smaller correction in petrol pump prices compared to a year ago.

Accommodation cost fell by 2.5% in May, similar to the previous month, reflecting the soft housing rental market.

Here’s more from MTI:

Services inflation eased to 0.5%, from 1.1% a month earlier, largely owing to budgetary measures including the reduction in the concessionary foreign domestic worker (FDW) levy and the waiver of national examination fees2 , as well as a smaller increase in telecommunication services fees.

Food inflation moderated to 1.8% from 2.1% in April, as the slower rise in non-cooked food prices more than offset the sharper price increases for restaurant meals.

CPI less imputed rentals on owner-occupied accommodation (CPI-ex OOA) rose by 0.2% in May Inflation as measured by CPI less imputed rentals on owner-occupied accommodation (OOA) edged up to 0.2% from 0% in April, on account of the increase in private road transport cost.

MAS Core Inflation eased to 0.1% in May MAS Core Inflation, which excludes the costs of accommodation and private road transport, came in at 0.1%, compared to 0.4% in the previous month. This mainly reflected the impact of budgetary measures on services costs, as well as softer food inflation.