• The Philippines’ year-on-year headline inflation inched up to 2.5 percent in February. It was posted at 2.4 percent last month and 4.1 percent during the same period a year ago. Mixed movements in the annual growths among the commodity groups were observed during the month. While negative annual rates were still observed in the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels and transport indices, these rates were lesser compared to those in January. Slower rates were seen in the indices of food and non-alcoholic beverages; alcoholic beverages and tobacco; clothing and footwear; furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services. The rest of the commodity groups retained their last month’s growths while the communication index had decreased.

• Excluding selected food and energy items, core inflation picked up 2.5 percent in February. Last month, it was registered at 2.2 percent and in February 2014, 3.0 percent.

• Inflation in NCR rose to 2.2 percent in February. A 1.5 percent growth was noticed last month and 2.8 percent in February 2014. Higher annual growths were displayed in food and non-alcoholic beverages and transport indices.

• Inflation in Areas Outside NCR (AONCR) however, continued to move at a slower pace at 2.6 percent in February. Inflation was seen at 2.7 percent last month and 4.5 percent during the same period a year ago. The indices of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels and transport still recorded annual declines. Annual adjustment in communication index also went down during the period. In addition, lower annual increases were noted in the indices of food and non-alcoholic beverages; health; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services.

• The national month-on-month growth of consumer prices slowed down to 0.1 percent in February. It resulted from the general price decreases in the heavily-weighted food items such as rice, corn, fruits, vegetables, sugar and selected spices. Cheaper prices of LPG, kerosene, gasoline and diesel were also noted during the month.

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  CONSUMER PRICE INDEX
  (2006=100)
  FEBRUARY 2015

By Region, Year-on-Year

• Inflation in NCR rose to 2.2 percent in February.

• Inflation in AONCR further slowed down to 2.6 percent in February as twelve regions posted slower annual growths. Among the regions in AONCR, Ilocos registered the lowest annual increase at 1.6 percent. The highest annual rate of 3.6 percent was however, noted in Davao Region.

By Commodity Group, Year-on-Year

• A positive slower annual growth was noticed in food and non-alcoholic index in the Philippines at 4.8 percent in February; alcoholic beverages and tobacco index, 3.9 percent; clothing and footwear, 3.1 percent; furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house index, 2.2 percent; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services index, 1.5 percent. Continuous annual declines were however, recorded in the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels and transport indices at corresponding rates of -1.1 percent and -0.5 percent in February. The annual movement in communication index likewise went down by 0.1 percent. The rest of the commodity groups retained their previous month’s rates.

   

  • A lower annual growth of 4.9 percent was noted in the country’s food alone index in February. Last month, it exhibited an annual rate of 5.6 percent and in February 2014, 5.9 percent.

  • The vegetable index recorded an annual decrease of 0.3 percent. Lower annual add-ons were likewise registered in all the other food groups except the index for fish which had a higher annual uptick of 5.3 percent.

   

• In NCR, the annual mark-up in the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages index was higher at 5.0 percent in February and transport index, 1.5 percent. Other commodity groups either had slower annual growths or retained their last month’s rate except for the index of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels which dropped by 0.7 percent.

  • The food alone index in NCR moved up at a faster rate of 5.2 percent in February. It was pegged at 4.8 percent last month and 4.4 percent in February 2014.

  • Faster annual increments were seen in the indices of fish, oils and fats, fruits, vegetables and food products not elsewhere classified. The rest of the food groups however, recorded lower annual growths.

• In AONCR, the housing, water, electricity, gas and water index decreased by 1.3 percent; transport index, -1.0 percent; and communication index, -0.2 percent. In addition, a lower annual hike was noticed in food and non-alcoholic beverages index at 4.7 percent; health index, 2.2 percent; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services, 1.7 percent. The rest of the commodity groups had higher annual gains with the education index retaining its last month’s growth of 4.9 percent.

  • The annual growth of the food alone index in AONCR eased to 4.8 percent in February. Last month, it was noted at 5.8 percent and in February 2014, 6.2 percent.

  • The vegetables index had a negative annual rate of 0.9 percent during the month.

  • The rice index further decelerated by 7.2 percent in February due to lower annual growths recorded in all the regions. The lowest rate of 1.1 percent was observed in SOCCSKSARGEN while the highest was in Central Luzon at 10.3 percent.

  • The vegetable index declined by 0.9 percent. Moreover, the rest of the food groups had lower annual increases except the index for other cereals, flour, cereal preparations, bread, pasta and other bakery products which retained its last month’s rate of 1.7 percent.

By Region, Month-on-Month

• Compared to last month’s level, prices of consumer items in NCR generally went up 0.6 percent in February. In January, the rate was seen at 0.4 percent. The index for alcoholic beverages and tobacco picked up to 0.5 percent; housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels index, 1.8 percent; and recreation and culture index, 0.3 percent. On the other hand, the clothing and footwear index slid to 0.1 percent and transport index, 2.0 percent while the index for restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services retained its last month’s growth of 0.1 percent. The rest of the commodity groups either declined or had a zero growth.

• Due to the offsetting movements observed among the commodity groups, consumer prices in AONCR generally had a zero growth. It moved by 0.3 percent in January. The indices for clothing and footwear and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels moved up at a faster rate of 0.5 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively; transport index, 0.8 percent; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services, 0.2 percent. On the contrary, the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages index declined by 0.4 percent and communication index, -0.1 percent. The rest of the commodity groups had slower monthly hikes with the indices for recreation and culture and education retaining their corresponding last month’s rates of 0.1 percent and zero growth.

• Mixed month-on-month movements were seen among the regions. Higher rates were noted in the regions of Central Visayas and Davao. On the other hand, CALABARZON, Eastern Visayas and Caraga had slower rates. The other regions either had negative rates or zero growths. The highest month-on-month growth at 0.6 percent was in Caraga while the lowest rate of -0.5 percent was in Ilocos.

• Among the three big areas of the country, consumer prices in Visayas generally remained stable compared to those in Luzon and Mindanao.

By Commodity Group, Month-on-Month

• The month-on-month adjustment in consumer prices at the national level eased to 0.1 percent in February. Last month, it went up by 0.4 percent. The food and non-alcoholic beverages index dropped by 0.4 percent and communication index, -0.1 percent. The monthly increment in the alcoholic beverages and tobacco index also decelerated to 0.5 percent, furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house index, 0.2 percent; and health index, 0.1 percent. The rest of the commodity groups either had faster monthly growths or retained their last month’s rate.

  • Adequate flow of supplies of vegetables from various production sites lowered their prices in the markets. Thus, the movement in the vegetables index in the three areas decreased: Philippines, -3.2 percent; NCR, -4.7 percent; and AONCR, -2.9 percent.

  • The rice index in the Philippines and AONCR continued to register negative monthly rate at -0.5 percent and NCR, -0.7 percent. Enough supplies of rice in the markets caused their prices to decline.

  • The fruit index in the Philippines dropped by 0.5 percent; NCR, -0.1 percent; and AONCR, -0.7 percent. This was brought about by the sufficient inflow of summer fruits in the markets like mango and watermelon and the commonly bought fruits such as banana and pineapple.

  • Lower prices of fresh meat such as pork, chicken and beef pushed down the meat index in the Philippines and AONCR by 0.1 percent. In NCR, the index had a zero growth as price increments in beef and canned meat were offset by the decreases in the prices of pork and chicken.

  • Improved volume of supplies of selected fish species in the markets particularly mollusks, marine and aquaculture fish species were observed during the month. Hence, the growth in the fish index in the Philippines decelerated to 0.4 percent; NCR, 2.0 percent; and AONCR, 0.2 percent compared to their last month’s levels.

• The index for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels gained 0.4 percent in AONCR and 1.8 percent in NCR due to higher charges for electricity rates in many regions. Increased rental rates for dwelling and higher salaries for carpenters, electricians and painters in many regions also contributed to the uptrend. At the national level, the index picked up 0.9 percent.

• Price mark-ups in gasoline, engine oil and lubricating oil in some provinces pushed up the transport index in the three areas: Philippines, 1.0 percent; NCR, 2.0 percent; and AONCR, 0.8 percent.

• The index for restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services in the AONCR inched up 0.2 percent due to price add-ons in items for personal care and meals eaten outside the home in selected regions. The group’s index in NCR likewise recorded a 0.1 percent as selected meals eaten outside the home were priced higher during the month. The group’s index in the Philippines went up 0.1 percent.

Note: CPIs and inflation rates by province and selected city are also available upon request at Philippine Statistics Authority, Economic Sector Statistics Services, Economic Indices and Indicators Division (Telephone Numbers: 716-39-35).

(Sgd.) LISA GRACE S. BERSALES, Ph.D.
National Statistician