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Advocates Philippines
Inflation Climbs To 6.1% In September
Photo credit: NPDC
The Philippine Statistics Authority announced that inflation surged to 6.1 percent in September 2023, marking a significant increase from the 5.3 percent recorded in August 2023.
This rise has kept the national average inflation for the period from January to September 2023 at 6.6 percent, compared to the 6.9 percent inflation rate in September 2022.
The spike in overall inflation in September 2023 was chiefly attributed to the notable increase in the year-on-year prices of heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages, soaring from 8.1 percent to 9.7 percent.
Transport costs also played a significant role, contributing to the uptrend with an inflation rate of 1.2 percent, up from 0.2 percent in the previous month. Health, recreation, sport, culture, and education services also experienced higher annual increases during the month, adding to the overall inflationary pressures.
The major contributors to the September 2023 overall inflation were food and non-alcoholic beverages, accounting for 61.0 percent, followed by restaurants and accommodation services with 11.4 percent, and housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels at 8.6 percent.
Food inflation at the national level surged to 10.0 percent in September 2023, up from 8.2 percent in the previous month. This increase was primarily due to rising prices of rice, meat, fruits, and nuts, with cereals and cereal products (including rice, corn, flour, bread, and bakery products) being the major contributor, accounting for 48.6 percent of the food inflation.
Core inflation, excluding selected food and energy items, decelerated slightly to 5.9 percent in September 2023 from 6.1 percent in the previous month, maintaining an average of 7.2 percent from January to September 2023.
Inflation in the National Capital Region (NCR) accelerated to 6.1 percent in September 2023, mainly driven by higher transport costs and increased prices in housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels.
Meanwhile, in areas outside NCR (AONCR), inflation rose to 6.0 percent, with notable increases in food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, health, and recreation services. Region III (Central Luzon) recorded the highest inflation rate at 7.9 percent, while Region VII (Central Visayas) had the lowest at 3.8 percent.
This rise has kept the national average inflation for the period from January to September 2023 at 6.6 percent, compared to the 6.9 percent inflation rate in September 2022.
The spike in overall inflation in September 2023 was chiefly attributed to the notable increase in the year-on-year prices of heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages, soaring from 8.1 percent to 9.7 percent.
Transport costs also played a significant role, contributing to the uptrend with an inflation rate of 1.2 percent, up from 0.2 percent in the previous month. Health, recreation, sport, culture, and education services also experienced higher annual increases during the month, adding to the overall inflationary pressures.
The major contributors to the September 2023 overall inflation were food and non-alcoholic beverages, accounting for 61.0 percent, followed by restaurants and accommodation services with 11.4 percent, and housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels at 8.6 percent.
Food inflation at the national level surged to 10.0 percent in September 2023, up from 8.2 percent in the previous month. This increase was primarily due to rising prices of rice, meat, fruits, and nuts, with cereals and cereal products (including rice, corn, flour, bread, and bakery products) being the major contributor, accounting for 48.6 percent of the food inflation.
Core inflation, excluding selected food and energy items, decelerated slightly to 5.9 percent in September 2023 from 6.1 percent in the previous month, maintaining an average of 7.2 percent from January to September 2023.
Inflation in the National Capital Region (NCR) accelerated to 6.1 percent in September 2023, mainly driven by higher transport costs and increased prices in housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels.
Meanwhile, in areas outside NCR (AONCR), inflation rose to 6.0 percent, with notable increases in food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, health, and recreation services. Region III (Central Luzon) recorded the highest inflation rate at 7.9 percent, while Region VII (Central Visayas) had the lowest at 3.8 percent.
Oct 5, 2023
