KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 22): Malaysia’s inflation remained steady in July against expectations for an uptick, with price increases led by restaurants, though key food items rose at a slower pace, official data showed on Thursday.

The consumer price index — Malaysia’s main gauge of inflation — rose 2.0% in July from a year earlier, The Department of Statistics Malaysia said in a statement. The rate has remained unchanged since May, and was a tad lower than the median 2.1% year-on-year (y-o-y) increase predicted in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

Food-and-beverage items, which account for nearly 30% of the index’s weight, rose at a slower pace of 1.6%, compared with a 2.0% y-o-y gain in June. Restaurant and accommodation services, however, rose 3.4%, while the personal care group rose 3.2%, led by jewellery and watches.

Inflation for the transport index that also includes fuel, purchase of vehicles, and public transport services increased at 1.2% in July — the same rate as in the previous month — following diesel subsidy rationalisation.

The segment that covers housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, meanwhile, climbed 3.2% in July, a similar rate of increase in June.

Core inflation, which measures domestic-driven inflation by excluding volatile items and other price-administered items, came in at 1.9% in July, the same pace as in June.

The official forecast calls for a headline inflation rate of 2% to 3.5% in 2024, versus 2.5% in 2023, with core inflation at 2% to 3% against the 3% average in 2023.