Malaysia’s inflation rate eased to 1.8% year-on-year in September 2026, down from 1.9% in August, while remaining comfortably within Bank Negara Malaysia’s target range of 1½%–2½%. Price growth slowed in several key categories, including food and non-alcoholic beverages (1.8% vs 1.9% in August), housing and utilities (1.4% vs 2.1%), furnishings and household equipment (0.3% vs 0.4%), information and communication (1.8% vs 2.6%), and miscellaneous goods and services (2.8% vs 3.2%).
In contrast, inflation held steady for alcoholic beverages and tobacco (2.8%), while price pressures intensified in a number of other segments: clothing and footwear (0.2% vs 0.1%), health (1.4% vs 1.3%), transportation (2.5% vs 2.0%), recreation and culture (1.2% vs 1.1%), education (2.1% vs 1.9%), restaurants and hotels (2.2% vs 2.1%), and insurance and financial services (1.2% vs 1.0%). On a month-on-month basis, consumer price growth slowed to 0.1% in September, down from a four-month high of 0.3% in August.
