Malaysia’s annual inflation held at 1.6% in January 2026, unchanged from the previous month and in line with market expectations. The latest reading remained at its highest level since January 2025, as upward price pressures came from most components, including food & drinks (1.5% vs 1.5% in December), alcoholic beverages & tobacco (2.5% vs 2.5%), housing (1.2% vs 0.9%), furnishing (0.2% vs 0.3%), health (1.4% vs 1.5%), communication (0.7% vs 0.9%), recreation (0.9% vs 0.8%), education (3.2% vs 2.8%), restaurants & accommodation services (3.0% vs 3.1%), insurance & financial services (5.5% vs 5.6%), and miscellaneous items (6.6% vs 5.7%). Meanwhile, clothing prices were flat after falling 0.1% previously. In contrast, transport cost fell 0.7%, reversing a 0.1% gain in December. Core inflation, which excludes volatile fresh food and administered prices, stayed steady at 2.3% yoy, its highest since October 2023. Monthly, consumer prices edged up 0.1%, easing from a 0.3% rise in December.