'It is possible to raise the OPR again this time considering that the country's inflation is still the lowest in the world.'
Malaysia's annual inflation rate reading jumped to a 16-month high of 4.7% for August 2022 from last month's 4.4%.
The increase also indicates that from January to August this year, the country's inflation rate has jumped 3.1% compared to the 3.2% forecast for 2022 by market players.
According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), the increase in the inflation figure is due to the strengthening of domestic demand, rising commodity costs and disruption of the global supply chain.
Follow the comprehensive breakdown of the Malaysian Consumer Cost Index (CPI) component that also measures the rate of inflation.
Food costs rose 7.2% in August compared to 6.9% in July.
Housing costs increased by 4.1% compared to 3.8%.
Transportation costs fell 5.2% compared to 5.6%.
The cost of furniture and housing goods jumped 4.3% compared to 4.2%.
The cost of health products canak 0.9% compared to 0.8%.
Clothing costs remained at 0.3%.
The cost of recreation reached 2.7% compared to 2.5%.
Education costs were unchanged at 1.2%.
Restaurant and hotel costs rose 6.4% compared to 5.8%.
The cost of other goods and services rose 2.4% compared to 2.1%.
Meanwhile, core consumer prices that exclude fresh food items and administered prices also rose 3.8% from 3.4%, the highest increase on record.
On the other hand, the new CPI reading indicates that Malaysia's inflation rate is the lowest in the world.
In comparison, the European zone inflation rate for August was at 9.1% while the United States (US) at 8.3%, Thailand at 7.9%, the Philippines at 6.3% and South Korea at 5.7%.
