Malaysia inflation rate seen increasing to 2.4% in June

[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia's consumer price index likely rose 2.4 per cent in June from a year earlier, partly due to fuel price hikes early in the month, a Reuters poll showed.

A higher inflation rate would also be rooted in seasonal effects rather than demand-pull pressures, HSBC said in a research note.

Annual consumer inflation in May was 2.1 per cent, following implementation of a 6 per cent goods and services tax (GST) in April.

In the first quarter, Malaysia's economy grew 5.6 per cent from a year earlier, as domestic demand helped to counter the effects of weak prices for the country's commodity exports.

REUTERS