MALAYSIA’S inflation rate rose to 1.4 per cent in November 2025, up from 1.3 per cent in October, as higher prices for education, alcohol and tobacco, and transportation lifted overall consumer prices, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia.
The Consumer Price Index stood at 135.1 points in November, compared with 133.3 points in the same month a year earlier.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the uptick was mainly driven by stronger inflation in the education group, which increased by 2.6 per cent, compared with 2.4 per cent in October.
“This was followed by alcoholic beverages and tobacco, which surged 2.4 per cent compared with 0.3 per cent previously, while transport prices rose 0.2 per cent after contracting 0.1 per cent in October.
“Meanwhile, personal care, social protection as well as miscellaneous goods and services increased 5.6 per cent (October 2025: 6.0 per cent); housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels rose 0.7 per cent (October 2025: 1.1 per cent); and furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance increased 0.2 per cent (October 2025: 0.3 per cent), all recording slower growth compared with the previous month,” he said in a statement.
Mohd Uzir noted that 61.1 per cent of items in the CPI basket, or 350 out of 573 items, recorded price increases in November. Of these, 342 items, or 97.7 per cent, posted price rises of 10 per cent or less, while eight items saw increases exceeding 10 per cent.
At the same time, 184 items, representing 32.1 per cent of the basket, recorded price declines, while prices for 39 items remained unchanged.
Fuel prices also contributed to the inflationary trend. Mohd Uzir said the average price of RON97 petrol increased to RM3.24 per litre in November from RM3.18 per litre in October, compared with RM3.19 per litre in November 2024.
The average diesel price in Peninsular Malaysia rose to RM3.05 per litre from RM2.92 per litre in October, compared with RM2.95 per litre a year earlier. Diesel prices in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan remained unchanged at RM2.15 per litre.
At the state level, four states recorded inflation rates above the national average of 1.4 per cent. Johor and Negeri Sembilan each posted inflation of 1.9 per cent, followed by Kuala Lumpur at 1.7 per cent and Selangor at 1.6 per cent.
A total of 12 states recorded inflation at or below the national rate, with Kelantan registering the lowest inflation at 0.2 per cent in November 2025.
In comparison with selected regional economies, Malaysia’s inflation rate remained lower than Vietnam’s 3.6 per cent, Indonesia’s 2.7 per cent and South Korea’s 2.4 per cent, but was higher than China’s 0.7 per cent and Thailand, which recorded deflation of 0.5 per cent. - December 22, 2025
