Brunei Consumer Prices Rise for Second Straight Month

Brunei’s consumer prices inched up 0.1% year-on-year in May 2026, matching April’s pace and marking the second consecutive month of inflation. Prices continued to rise for food and non-alcoholic beverages (1.2% vs 0.8% in April), furnishings and household maintenance (0.2% vs 0.8%), health (0.4% vs 0.4%), transport (0.4% vs 0.1%), and restaurants and hotels (0.4% vs 0.5%). Also, cost of housing and utilities increased 0.2%, swinging from a 0.4% increase in April. Meanwhile, education inflation was stable (at 0.3%). In contrast, several categories continued to record declines, including communication (-3.4% vs -3.4%), recreation and culture (-1.0% vs -1.2%), and miscellaneous goods and services (-0.6% vs -0.5%). Prices of clothing and footwear fell 1.5%, reversing April's 3.2% increase. On a monthly basis, the CPI edged down 0.1%, following a 0.5% rise in April.

Brunei’s consumer prices rose 0.1% year-on-year in April 2026, reversing a 0.1% decline in the prior month and marking the first inflationary reading since October last year. The uptick was driven partly by transport costs, which edged up 0.1% after a 0.4% fall previously. Price pressures also strengthened for food and non-alcoholic beverages (0.8% vs 0.6% in March), clothing and footwear (3.2% vs 2.3%), furnishings and household maintenance (0.8% vs 0.7%), health (0.4% vs 0.2%), and restaurants and hotels (0.5% vs 0.7%). Education inflation held steady at 0.3%. Meanwhile, several categories continued to record declines, including housing and utilities (-0.4% vs -0.3%), recreation and culture (-1.2% vs -2.2%), communication (-3.4% vs -3.5%), and miscellaneous goods and services (-0.5% vs -0.1%). On a monthly basis, consumer prices climbed 0.5%, rebounding from a 0.3% drop in March and marking the strongest monthly increase since December 2024.

Brunei’s consumer prices edged down 0.1% year-on-year in March 2026, easing from a 0.3% decline in the previous month and marking a fifth straight month of deflation, though the pace of decline softened to the mildest since November. The moderation was driven by a rebound in clothing and footwear (2.3% vs -1.2% in February) and furnishings and household maintenance (0.7% vs -0.2%), alongside slightly faster inflation in restaurants and hotels (0.7% vs 0.5%). Prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages continued to rise, albeit at a slower pace (0.6% vs 0.7%), while inflation held steady for health (0.2%) and education (0.3%). On the downside, deflation persisted in housing and utilities (-0.3%), recreation and culture (-2.2% vs -2.9%), miscellaneous goods and services (-0.1% vs -0.3%), and communication (-3.5%). Meanwhile, transport prices reversed course, falling 0.4% after February's marginal increase. On a monthly basis, CPI declined 0.3%, reversing a 0.2% rise in February.