Singapore’s core, headline inflation hold steady at 1.2% in November
Official forecasts for 2025 also remain unchanged, at 0.5% for core inflation, and 0.5 to 1% for headline inflation
[SINGAPORE] Core and headline inflation remained unchanged from October levels in November on a yearly basis, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said on Tuesday (Dec 23), as they maintained their full-year forecasts.
Core inflation, which excludes accommodation and private transport, was 1.2 per cent in November, similar to in October. This was because higher services inflation was offset by lower retail and other goods inflation and a steeper decline in the cost of electricity and gas, the authorities said.
Headline inflation also came in at 1.2 per cent last month, the same as October, which MAS and MTI said mainly reflected accommodation and core inflation remaining unchanged.
The month’s readings were marginally lower than the median estimates from Bloomberg’s polls of private-sector economists, which had put both measures at 1.3 per cent.
On a month-on-month basis, the core prices edged down by 0.1 per cent in November, while the all-items consumer price index (CPI) prices rose by 0.2 per cent.
For the full year, MTI and MAS kept their forecasts at 0.5 per cent for core inflation, and 0.5 to 1 per cent for headline inflation. They also maintained their 2026 full-year forecasts at 0.5 to 1.5 per cent for both core and headline inflation.
Their outlook statement was also identical to the preceding month’s, flagging uncertainties.
They continue to expect imported costs to decline, albeit at a slower pace. Domestically, “administrative factors temporarily dampening inflation are expected to continue tapering over the coming quarters”.
But they add that supply shocks could lift imported costs abruptly, while “a sharper-than-expected weakening in global demand could keep core inflation lower for longer”.
Key CPI categories
Price movements were mixed across CPI categories in November. Most categories saw inflation moderate or hold steady.
Private transport inflation eased to 3.5 per cent, from 3.8 per cent in October, on the back of a smaller increase in car prices.
Retail and other goods inflation also dipped to 0.3 per cent in November, from 0.4 per cent previously, as the prices of clothing and footwear and other appliances for personal care declined.
Meanwhile, electricity and gas prices fell more sharply at 4.1 per cent, compared with 4 per cent in the preceding month, because of a larger decline in electricity costs.
Accommodation costs rose at a steady pace – 0.3 per cent – as housing rents increased at a similar rate in October and November.
Food inflation was also unchanged, at 1.2 per cent, as the prices of food services and non-cooked food increased at the same pace as in October.
Only services inflation edged up. It was 1.9 per cent in November, against October’s 1.8 per cent. This was due to larger increases in the costs of point-to-point transport services and health insurance.
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