MALAYSIA'S INFLATION UP 1.6 PCT IN DECEMBER 2025 -- DOSM

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 (Bernama) -- Malaysia’s inflation rose 1.6 per cent in December 2025, with the consumer price index at 135.5 points compared with 133.4 a year earlier, the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said.

In a statement today, DOSM said said the increase was driven by higher inflation for various groups, led by personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services, which rose 5.7 per cent from 5.6 per cent in November.

This was followed by education, which climbed 2.8 per cent from 2.6 per cent previously, while alcoholic beverages and tobacco increased 2.5 per cent from 2.4 per cent in November.

As for other groups, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels rose 0.9 per cent (November 2025: 0.7 per cent); information and communication grew 0.9 per cent (November 2025: -1.3 per cent); furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance increased 0.3 per cent (November 2025: 0.2 per cent) and clothing and footwear edged up 0.1 per cent (November 2025: -0.1 per cent).

In November 2025, Malaysia’s inflation increased 1.4 per cent year-on-year.

Chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said that in December, 62.8 per cent of items, or 360 out of 573.

Of these, 350 items, or 97.2 per cent, registered an increase of less than or equal to 10 per cent, while only 10 items recorded increases of more than 10 per cent.

A total of 172 items, or 30 per cent, showed a decline and 41 items remained unchanged, he said.

DOSM said the average price of RON97 petrol remained unchanged at RM3.24 per litre in December.

“The average price for diesel in Peninsular Malaysia was RM3.03 per litre compared to RM3.05 per litre in November 2025 (December 2024: RM2.95 per litre).

“However, the average price of diesel for Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan remained at RM2.15 per litre,” the agency said.

Meanwhile, at the state level, five states recorded increases above the national inflation level of 1.6 per cent, namely Johor (2.3 per cent), Negeri Sembilan (2.2 per cent), Pahang (1.8 per cent); Labuan (1.8 per cent) and Selangor (1.7 per cent).

The remainder 11 states increased below and equal to the national inflation rate with Kelantan recording the lowest inflation of 0.5 per cent in December, said Mohd Uzir.

Compared with selected regional peers, Malaysia’s inflation rate of 1.6 per cent was lower than inflation in Vietnam (3.5 per cent), Indonesia (2.9 per cent) and South Korea (2.3 per cent), but was higher than China (0.8 per cent) and Thailand (-0.3 per cent).

-- BERNAMA