2021.06.0810:50:00UTC+00Taiwan Inflation Rises More Than Expected In May

Taiwan's consumer price inflation rose more than expected in May on higher fuel prices, data released by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting & Statistics revealed on Tuesday.

Consumer prices rose 2.48 percent year-on-year in May, faster than the 2.1 percent increase in April. This was faster than the 2.2 percent increase expected by economists.

This was the fastest rate since February 2013, when prices rose 2.97 percent.

The indices for fuels and lubricants surged 43.92 percent due to a relatively lower comparison base and the index for transportation fees rose 15.61 percent due to the increase in airfares.

Excluding fruits, vegetables and energy, core consumer prices rose 1.58 percent in May.

On a monthly basis, the consumer price index gained 0.26 percent mainly because of higher fruits and vegetable prices.

For the first five months of 2021, the CPI increased 1.39 percent over the same period of previous year.

Data showed that wholesale prices grew 0.43 percent on month and were up 11.33 percent annually in May.