JAKARTA, 5 June 2023 – The inflation rate in May indicates a weakening trend after the post-Eid holiday period, even reaching the lowest inflation rate since January 2023, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Monday.
“The decrease in the inflation rate in May 2023 is mainly contributed by a general decrease in prices in the transportation, clothing, and footwear groups,” BPS deputy chairman Pudji Ismartini told a press conference in Jakarta.
BPS recorded a monthly inflation rate of 0.09% in May. The year-on-year inflation rate stood at 4%, while the year-to-date inflation rate for May was 1.10%.
Pudji said after the Eid holiday that fell on April 22, the inflation rate decreased in May. The main commodities contributing to deflation in May 2023 were air transport fares (-0.06%), red chili (-0.04%), intercity transportation fares (-0.02%), and bird’s eye chili (-0.02%).
At the national level, the inflation rate was mainly constrained by the deflation in air transport fares, which experienced a 5.26% decrease.
“This phenomenon is also reflected in the 10 cities with the deepest deflation in May 2023, such as Kupang, which experienced a deflation of -0.79%, mainly due to deflation in air transport fares of 0.85%,” said Pudji.
The core inflation stood at 0.06%, lower than the previous month (0.25%). The dominant commodities contributing to core inflation were cars, house rent, bottled water, and domestic helpers’ wages.
“The core component contributed 0.04% to the inflation in May 2023,” added Pudji.
“The dominant commodities contributing to inflation are shallots, chicken meat, chicken eggs, and garlic,” she said.