Malaysia’s inflation eases to 1.9% in June as transport cost pressures moderate
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s inflation rate eased slightly to 1.9 per cent year-on-year in June 2026, signalling a moderation in consumer price growth as lower transport-related inflation helped offset rising costs in several other spending categories.
Latest data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) showed the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to 137.1 in June from 134.5 recorded during the same month last year, reflecting continued but more moderate price increases across the economy.
The slower inflation reading follows a 2.0 per cent increase recorded in May, suggesting that overall price pressures remained relatively contained despite higher costs in selected goods and services.
DOSM attributed the moderation primarily to a slowdown in the transport category, where inflation eased to 2.8 per cent from 3.8 per cent in the previous month.
The department also recorded softer price growth in personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services, as well as the education segment, indicating that inflationary pressures had become less widespread in several consumer sectors.
However, not all categories experienced slower price increases.
Insurance and financial services registered one of the strongest increases, with inflation accelerating to 5.7 per cent, while prices for restaurants and accommodation services rose 2.6 per cent, reflecting continued cost pressures in the services sector.
According to DOSM, 373 out of 573 monitored consumer items, or 65.1 per cent, recorded price increases during the month, although the majority experienced increases of 10 per cent or less, suggesting that broad-based price spikes remained limited.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages, which account for the largest weighting in Malaysia’s CPI basket at 29.8 per cent, maintained an inflation rate of 1.4 per cent, unchanged from the previous month.
Within the category, prices for food away from home continued to increase at 2.4 per cent, while food prepared at home recorded a more modest rise of 0.5 per cent.
Among individual food categories, meat prices recorded a sharper increase, with inflation rising to 1.5 per cent compared with 0.2 per cent in May.
Fresh chicken prices also edged higher, with the average price of standard chicken reaching RM10.77 per kilogram, up from RM10.57 recorded a year earlier.
Fuel prices, meanwhile, moved lower during the month.
The average retail price of RON97 petrol declined to RM4.33 per litre from RM4.81 previously, while the average diesel price in Peninsular Malaysia eased to RM4.50 per litre, compared with RM5.01 a month earlier.
Regional inflation trends varied across the country, with seven states and federal territories recording inflation rates above the national average.
Among the highest were Pahang at 2.6 per cent, Johor and Negeri Sembilan at 2.5 per cent each, followed by Kuala Lumpur at 2.2 per cent and Putrajaya at 2.0 per cent.
On a quarterly basis, Malaysia’s inflation averaged 1.9 per cent during the second quarter of 2026, higher than the 1.6 per cent recorded in the first quarter, indicating that while monthly inflation has moderated, consumer prices continue to trend upward compared with earlier in the year.
The latest figures suggest Malaysia continues to experience relatively manageable inflation, supported by easing transport and fuel costs, although persistent increases in services and selected food categories remain key factors influencing household spending.
