KUALA LUMPUR (May 19): Malaysia’s consumer inflation rose at their fastest pace in one-and-a-half years in April, as the prices of transport and fuel accelerated amid fallout from the Iran war.

The consumer price index, the country’s main gauge of inflation, rose 1.9% in April when compared to the same month a year earlier, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said in a statement. The reading is the highest since October 2024 and picking up from 1.7% year-on-year gain in March.

Core inflation — a measure of underlying inflation by stripping out volatile prices of items such as fresh food, as well as administered prices of goods — was a tad slower at 2.0% in April.

Oil prices remained elevated as prospects of durable peace in West Asia dimmed, supporting prices of petroleum-derived goods from petrol to fertilisers amid the supply disruption. 

Prices of diesel alone are now nearly double the level before the outbreak of the Iran war at the end of February. Meanwhile, targeted subsidies for RON95 have insulated the average consumer against spikes in petrol prices.

The transport index, which measures price changes including that of petrol and public transport services, rose to 4.1% year-on-year in April compared to 1.6% increase in March.

Per litre, prices of unsubsidised diesel in Peninsular Malaysia rose to RM5.92 in April from RM4.12 the month earlier, while the premium grade RON97 rose to RM5.06 in April from RM4.03 in March.

Inflation of food and beverages, a group which accounted for nearly 30% of the index’s weightage, was slightly higher at 1.2% in April versus 1.1% in March.

Other groups that saw increases included insurance and financial services, alcoholic beverages and tobacco, information and communication and furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance.

Inflation for a group covering housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels was a tad slower month-on-month.