2021.04.2305:55:00UTC+00Singapore Inflation Increases In March

Singapore's consumer prices rose in March, data from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Ministry of Trade and Industry showed on Friday.

The consumer price index rose 1.3 percent year-on-year in March, following a 0.7 percent increase in February. This was in line with economists' expectation.

This latest consumer prices outcome was largely due to a rise in core inflation and prices for private transportation cost.

MAS core CPI, which excludes costs of accommodation and private road transport, grew 0.5 percent annually in March, following a 0.2 percent increase in the preceding month.

The statistical office expects external inflation to rise in the coming quarters, amid a recovery in global oil prices and turnaround in producer price inflation in a number of major economies.

Domestic cost pressures are expected to pick up, as labor market condition improved and private consumption recovers.

For 2021, MAS Core Inflation is expected to average 0-1 percent, while the CPI-All Items inflation is expected to come between 0.5-1.5 percent.