SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore’s key consumer price gauge rose 4.2% in June, matching economists’ forecasts, official data showed on Monday.
Inflation was lower as prices of food and energy eased, according to a joint statement by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the trade ministry.
“Global supply chain frictions, energy and food commodity prices have moderated,” they said.
The core inflation rate – which excludes private road transport and accommodation costs – rose 4.2% year-on-year in June, in line with a Reuters poll of economists, and easing from 4.7% in May.
Headline inflation was up 4.5% year-on-year in June, compared with a forecast 4.55% increase in a Reuters poll, and 5.1% in May.
Authorities said core prices should moderate further in the second half of the year.
Core inflation was expected to average 3.5% to 4.5% while headline inflation was forecast at 4.5 to 5.5% this year, according to the government.
Economists are generally expecting MAS to keep monetary policy settings unchanged in the next review in October on a weak growth outlook and the still elevated but easing inflation.
The MAS left the monetary policy settings unchanged in April, after tightening five times in a row since October 2021, reflecting concerns over the city-state’s growth outlook.
Singapore’s economy narrowly dodged a recession in the second quarter of 2023, preliminary data showed, though economists cautioned of a possible downward revision in final data.
(Reporting by Chen Lin; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor)
