NOVEMBER 2019

YEAR-ON-YEAR

Philippines

The country’s inflation for the bottom 30% income households went up by 1.7 percent in November 2019 after it slowed down for five consecutive months since June 2019.

Inflation of consumer items for this income group in October 2019 was recorded at 0.8 percent and in November 2018, 8.3 percent.

The index of fuel, light and water (FLW) posted an annual increment of 0.2 percent in November 2019, from 0.7 percent annual drop in the previous month. In addition, higher annual increases were noted in the indices of food, beverages and tobacco (FBT) at 1.6 percent; clothing, 3.0 percent; housing and repairs (H&R), 3.7 percent; and miscellaneous, 2.3 percent. Meanwhile, the index of services exhibited a slower annual rate of 2.7 percent during the month (see Tables 3 and 4).

Inflation for food at the national level rose by 0.4 percent in November 2019. Its annual rate declined by 0.6 percent in October 2019, while it was registered at 8.3 percent in November 2018 (see Tables 5 and 7).

Higher annual hikes were noted in the indices of the following food groups:

• Eggs, 5.8%;
• Fish, 6.3%;
• Fruits and vegetables, 4.7%;
• Meat, 0.8%; and
• Miscellaneous foods, 2.3%.

Moreover, the index of corn recorded an annual uptick of 0.1 percent during the month, from 0.5 percent annual decrease in the previous month.

Annual increases, however, slowed down in the index of dairy products at 1.6 percent. The annual movement of rice index continued to drop as it posted -6.3 percent this month. The index of cereal preparations retained its previous month’s annual rate of 2.1 percent (see Table 5).

National Capital Region (NCR)

On an annual basis, prices for this particular group of consumers in NCR rose by 1.1 percent in November 2019. In the previous month, inflation in the area was observed at 0.2 percent and in November 2018, 6.2 percent.

The uptrend in the inflation in NCR for November 2019 was mainly due to the higher annual increment in the index of FBT at 2.1 percent. On the other hand, the annual rate of miscellaneous index eased to 1.5 percent. Moreover, the indices of FLW and services exhibited annual declines of 3.7 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.

The rest of the commodity groups retained their previous month’s annual rates (see Tables 3 and 4).

Areas Outside NCR (AONCR)

Inflation for the bottom 30% income households in AONCR, likewise, picked up by 1.7 percent in November 2019. Inflation in October 2019 was posted at 0.8 percent and in November 2018, 8.3 percent.

Relative to their previous month’s annual rates, higher annual increases were noted in the indices of FBT at 1.5 percent; clothing, 3.0 percent; H&R, 3.7 percent; and miscellaneous, 2.3 percent. In addition, the FLW index posted an annual mark-up of 0.2 percent in November 2019, from a decline of 0.6 percent in the previous month. Annual movement of services index during the month remained at 2.8 percent (see Tables 3 and 4).

Compared with their previous month’s annual rates, 11 regions recorded higher inflation during the month. Likewise, inflation in Region VII (Central Visayas) moved up by 1.9 percent during the period, from 0.4 percent drop in the previous month. The highest inflation among the regions in AONCR remained in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) at 4.2 percent, while the lowest was still noticed in Region I (Ilocos Region) which decreased by 0.9 percent (see Table 4).

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.