Singapore CPI inflation lowest since March 2021

Annual consumer inflation in Singapore has eased to 2% in September from 2.2% in August, data by Statistics Singapore showed.

It has been the lowest inflation level since March 2021.

The actual figure compares with market consensus of 1.9%.

Food inflation has been the lowest in 31 months, at 2.6%, while easing from 2.7% in August.

Last month, prices dropped for:

– transport (-1% YoY after a 0.2% YoY rise in August);
– clothing (-0.3% YoY versus -2.6% YoY in August);
– communication (-1% YoY after a 0.7% YoY rise in August).

At the same time, prices continued to surge for:

– healthcare (4.1% YoY versus 3.7% YoY in August);
– recreation and culture (4.5% YoY compared to 4.2% YoY in August);
– education (3.4% YoY versus 3% YoY in August);
– miscellaneous goods and services (1.2% YoY compared to 0.9% YoY in August).

Meanwhile, annual core CPI inflation picked up to a three-month high of 2.8% in September from 2.7% in August.

The Singaporean Dollar was 0.34% weaker on the day against its US counterpart, with the USD/SGD currency pair last trading at 1.3196.

The US Dollar continued to gain with investors betting on Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election.