Inflation in Central Visayas jumps to 7.4%

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Central Visayas recorded its highest inflation rate last August, the Philippine Statistics Authority in the region (PSA-7) noted.

The latest report from PSA-7 showed that inflation in the region reached 7.4 percent in August, its highest since 2019. It was up by 1.5 points compared to the 6.9 percent registered in July. 

Inflation is used to measure the general increase in the prices of goods and services. It also meant weakening of the purchasing power. 

Food Inflation

Rising costs of basic commodities like food and non-alcoholic beverages, housing, water, electricity, and fuel continue to be the biggest driver of the increasing inflation.

PSA-7 observed a 9.9 percent annual growth in the food and non-alcoholic beverages index; 5.2 percent for the housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels index; and 3.6 percent for the restaurants and accommodation services index. 

“Moreover, inflation for food at the regional level rose further to 10.6 percent in August 2022 from 8.8 percent in July 2022,” portion of the PSA-7 report read. 

The food groups with high annual increments, according to the same report from the regional statistics office, included flour, bread and other bakery products, pasta products, and other cereals; meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals; fish and other seafood; milk, other dairy products, and eggs; oils and fats; fruits and nuts; vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses; sugar, confectionery, and desserts; and ready-made food and other food products. 

Statisticians also noted mark-ups in other indices such as alcoholic beverages and tobacco (7.3 percent); clothing and footwear (0.9 percent); health (1.3 percent); education services (0.4 percent); and personal care, and miscellaneous goods and services (1.3 percent). 

On the other hand, PSA-7 noted a decrease in costs in several indices including furnishing, household equipment, and routine household maintenance (3.1 percent); transport (19 percent); and recreation, sport, and culture (0.7 percent). 

By Province

PSA-7 said Cebu province has the highest inflation registered last August, at 10.7 percent while that of Siquijor has started to ease, at 8.6 percent. 

“Comparing with the provinces and HUCs (highly urbanized cities) previous month’s annual rates, four out of three provinces and all HUCs in Central Visayas exhibited higher inflation in August 2022. Only Siquijor exhibited lower inflation in August 2022 at 8.6 percent from the 9.3 percent in July 2022,” they said.

In terms of highly urbanized cities in Central Visayas, Mandaue City posted the highest inflation at 3.9 percent, followed by Cebu City at 3.2 percent, PSA-7 added.

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