Hits 10-month high at 2.0% YoY in May, surpassing forecasts
The inflation rate rose to a 10-month high of 2.0% YoY in May (Apr: 1.8%), slightly higher than both the house forecast and market consensus of 1.9%, partly due to higher-than-expected housing cost
- In addition to higher rents for primary residences, a resurgence in food prices, and a sharp increase in communication costs have contributed to the above-consensus inflation reading.
- On a MoM basis, headline inflation doubled to 0.30% (Apr: 0.15%), mainly driven by higher food (0.26%; Apr: 0.13%) and housing prices (0.62%; Apr: 0.00%).
- Core inflation remained steady at 1.9% YoY (Apr: 1.9%) due to the high base effect but climbed by 0.4% MoM (Apr: 0.2%), marking the highest increase in 16 months due to significant rises in core housing and communication costs.
