SINGAPORE: Singapore's annual core consumer inflation probably held steady at 2.1 percent in September, a Reuters poll showed, while all-items inflation was likely to pick up from a six-month low.

The all-items consumer price index (CPI) probably rose 1.0 percent in September from a year earlier, according to a Reuters survey of 12 economists. In August, headline CPI had risen 0.9 percent from a year earlier, the lowest increase since February.

Some economists said that a recent rise in prices of car permits, which drivers must bid for to own a vehicle, could give the headline inflation rate a slight lift in September.

The poll also showed that the Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS) core inflation measure was likely 2.1 percent from a year earlier in September, steady from the year-on-year rise recorded in August. The MAS's core inflation measure, which excludes changes in the price of cars and accommodation, is the focus of its monetary policy.

Copyright Reuters, 2014