Middle East conflict could drive up Singapore’s inflation, warn economists, after core inflation dips in May

[SINGAPORE] Escalating tensions in the Middle East could spark a new wave of inflationary pressures, warned private sector economists, even as Singapore’s authorities kept to their full-year inflation forecast.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Monday (Jun 23) left their 2025 core inflation forecast of 0.5 to 1.5 per cent unchanged, after May’s inflation readings dipped from the previous month.

According to data from Department of Statistics, Singapore’s core and headline inflation edged down to 0.6 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively, in line with economists’ expectations. On a month-on-month basis, core inflation was flat while headline inflation rose 0.7 per cent.