Malaysia's Feb CPI rises 0.1% y/y, just below forecast

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's consumer price index (CPI) in February rose for the first time in 12 months, expanding 0.1% from a year earlier on higher prices of food and other goods and services, government data showed on Wednesday.

The rise was slightly slower than the 0.2% annual growth forecast by economists in a Reuters poll and the first since February 2020 when it grew 1.3%. In January, the index had fallen 0.2%.

Last month's CPI expansion was largely driven by higher prices of miscellaneous goods and services, as well as food and non-alcoholic beverages, the Statistics Department said in a statement.

The growth, however, was offset by lower costs of transport, housing, utilities, clothing, and restaurants and hotels, the department said.