Singapore CPI inflation stable at near 3-year low

Annual consumer inflation in Singapore has remained stable at 2.4% in July, data by Statistics Singapore showed.

It has been the lowest inflation level since August 2021.

The actual figure compares with market consensus of 2.5%.

Food inflation has been the lowest in more than 2 years in July, at 2.7%, while easing from 2.8% in June.

Last month, prices continued to surge for:

– housing & utilities (3.5% YoY versus 3.7% YoY in June);
– transport (1.4% YoY versus 0.3% YoY in June);
– healthcare (3.9% YoY versus 3.8% YoY in June);
– recreation & culture (3.1% YoY versus 4.7% YoY in June);
– education (3.3% YoY versus 3.3% YoY in June);
– miscellaneous goods & services (0.7% YoY versus 0.8% YoY in June);
– communication (0.3% YoY versus 0.8% YoY in June).

Meanwhile, annual core CPI inflation eased to 2.5% in July from 2.9% in June. It has been the lowest core inflation rate since February 2022.

The USD/SGD currency pair settled 0.80% lower at 1.3001, a fresh 6 1/2-year low, on Friday. For the week, the exotic currency pair went down 1.16%, while extending the losses from the previous four weeks.