MANILA (XINHUA) – Year-on-year inflation in the Philippines further eased to 4.1 per cent in November, the lowest since March 2022, mainly due to lower food prices, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said yesterday.
The November inflation rate, down from 4.9 per cent in October, brought the national average inflation from January to November this year to 6.2 per cent.
In November 2022, the inflation rate was higher at eight per cent.
In a press conference, PSA’s head Dennis Mapa said the drop in the overall inflation in November was primarily brought about by the lower year-on-year growth rate of the heavily weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages at 5.7 per cent in November from seven per cent in October. Mapa said the restaurants and accommodation services, which slowed to 5.6 per cent in November from 6.3 per cent in the previous month, also contributed to easing the overall inflation rate in November.
Core inflation, which excludes selected food and energy items, decreased to 4.7 per cent in November from 5.3 per cent in October. The average core inflation for January to November stood at 6.8 per cent.
“The government needs to monitor the inflation situation in the face of continued price pressures coming from geopolitical tensions and extreme weather situations, further fuelling uncertainty,” National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.
