The overall year-on-year increase in prices of widely used goods rose to its fastest pace in three months in October, the government reported on Thursday.
Preliminary data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed headline inflation at 2.5% in October, picking up from the 2.3% pace the month before.
The October inflation result marked the fastest pace in three months or since the 2.7% reading in July 2020.
Year to date, inflation settled at 2.5%, still within the BSP’s 2-4% target this year, but above the 2.3% forecast for the entire year.
Core inflation, which discounted volatile prices of food and fuel, stood at three percent in October — slower than the 3.2% in the previous month, but faster than the 2.6% a year earlier. It averaged 3.1% so far this year.
The PSA attributed the pickup in October to the faster increase in prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages at 2.1% from 1.5% in September. Food and non-alcoholic beverages account for 38.3% of the theoretical basket of goods that an average Filipino household consumes.
The PSA also noted faster annual rates in the indices of education (1.2% from one percent in September) and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services (2.4% from 2.3%).
The food-alone index likewise accelerated to 2.1% versus the previous month’s 1.5%. This marked the first time food prices picked up following five consecutive months of slowing down.
In particular, rates for the indices of fish as well as oils and fats quickened to 3.7% and 2.5%, respectively, from 2.6% and 2.4%. The index for meat also quickened to 4.7% from 2.9%.
Meanwhile, the October inflation for the bottom 30% of households slightly picked up to 2.9% from 2.8% in September and a 0.1% decline in October 2019.
(source: BSP & PSA)