APRIL 2019

YEAR-ON-YEAR

Philippines

Inflation for the bottom 30% income households at the national level continued to move at a slower pace of 4.3 percent in April 2019. Inflation for this group of consumers during the month was the lowest since January 2018.

Inflation in March 2019 was recorded at 4.6 percent and in April 2018, 6.3 percent.

Year-on-year growth of food, beverages and tobacco (FBT) index eased further to 4.5 percent in April 2019. Likewise, the annual increase in housing and repairs (H&R) index decelerated to 4.2 percent during the month. On the other hand, higher annual increments were observed in the indices of clothing at 3.1 percent; and fuel, light and water (FLW) at 4.3 percent. The indices of services and miscellaneous retained their previous month’s annual rates of 3.7 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively (see Tables 3 and 4).

The food index at the national level posted a slower annual rate of 3.9 percent in April 2019. Inflation of the food index in March 2019 was observed at 4.3 percent and in April 2018, 6.1 percent (see Tables 5 and 7).

The annual change of corn index dropped further by 3.4 percent in April 2019. Moreover, annual mark-ups slowed down in the indices of rice at 2.9 percent; dairy products, 3.2 percent; fish, 6.8 percent; meat, 2.9 percent; and miscellaneous foods, 4.7 percent.

Meanwhile, annual hikes were higher in the indices of cereal preparations at 3.9 percent; eggs, 2.4 percent; and fruits and vegetables, 6.9 percent (see Table 5).

National Capital Region (NCR)

Inflation for the bottom 30% income households in NCR, however, was higher at 2.6 percent in April 2019. In the previous month, inflation was recorded at 2.3 percent, and in April 2018, 6.3 percent. Faster annual rates were noted in the indices of FBT at 2.5 percent and H&R at 0.9 percent.

On the other hand, slower annual increments were observed in the indices of clothing at 1.2 percent; FLW, 3.3 percent; and miscellaneous, 2.1 percent. Annual rate of services index remained at 3.3 percent (see Tables 3 and 4).

Food index in NCR posted an annual increase of 2.2 percent during the month. This was higher compared with the 1.6 percent annual rate in March 2019. Inflation of the food index in April 2018 was observed at 5.6 percent (see Tables 5 and 7).

Faster annual mark-ups were posted in the indices of eggs at 6.4 percent; fruits and vegetables, 6.5 percent; and meat, 4.1 percent. On the contrary, annual rates in the indices of rice dropped by 4.5 percent; and corn by 0.5 percent. Annual upticks in the indices of cereal preparations decelerated to 3.8 percent; dairy products, 6.4 percent; fish, 2.7 percent; and miscellaneous foods, 2.2 percent (see Table 5).

Areas Outside NCR (AONCR)

Following the same trend at the national level, inflation in AONCR for the bottom 30% income households slowed down further to 4.3 percent in April 2019. In the previous month, its annual rate was higher at 4.6 percent and in April 2018, 6.3 percent.

Slower annual hikes during the month were recorded in FBT index at 4.4 percent and H&R index at 4.2 percent. Meanwhile, the indices of clothing and FLW registered higher annual increases of 3.2 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively. Other commodity groups retained their previous month’s annual rates (see Tables 3 and 4).

Relative to their annual increments in the previous month, 12 regions outside NCR exhibited slower annual rates in April 2019. The lowest inflation of 1.7 percent was still noted in Region X (Northern Mindanao), while the highest annual rate of 10.0 percent remained in MIMAROPA Region (see Table 4).

The food index in AONCR posted a slower annual hike of 4.0 percent during the month. Its annual rate settled to 4.4 percent in the previous month and 6.2 percent in the same month of the previous year (see Tables 5 and 7).

The annual change of corn index declined further by 3.4 percent during the month. Moreover, annual upticks were slower in the indices of rice at 3.0 percent; fish, 6.9 percent; meat, 2.8 percent; and miscellaneous foods, 4.7 percent. The rest of the food groups either recorded higher annual gains or retained their previous month’s annual rates (see Table 5).

Note:

Monthly CPIs for the bottom 30% income households by province and selected cities are posted at the PSA website (http://openstat.psa.gov.ph/).

See more at the Consumer Price Index for Bottom 30% Income Households Main page.