MANILA, Philippines, March 6 ------ Inflation in February eased to its lowest level in five months due mainly to the slower increases in food prices, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Deputy National Statistician Divina Gracia del Prado said in a press conference that headline inflation the rate of increase in average prices of goods and services typically purchased by Filipino consumers slowed to 2.1 percent in February from January’s 2.9 percent and the 3.4 percent in the same month last year.
The February inflation is the lowest since the 1.9 percent print in September last year. It is also below the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ 2.2 to three percent forecast for February. Del Prado cited food and non-alcoholic beverages as the main driver of the downward trend in inflation as it posted a slower annual increment at 2.6 percent in February from 3.8 percent in the previous month.
Inflation for food alone eased to 2.6 percent in February from the previous month’s four percent. This was primarily due to vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses, which had a slower inflation of 7.1 percent in February from the previous month’s 21.1 percent. Rice also contributed to the slower food inflation as it registered a sharper deflation of 4.9 percent in February from 2.3 percent in January.
Since July 2024, rice prices have been decreasing on a month-on-month basis amid easing international prices and reduced tariffs. Also contributing to the downtrend in inflation was the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels commodity group, which had a slower increase of 1.6 percent in February from a 2.2-percent uptick in January. Another driver of the lower inflation was the transport commodity group, which posted a 0.2-percent decline in February from a 1.1-percent increase in the previous month.
Average inflation for the January to February period was at 2.5 percent, within the government’s two to four percent target. While inflation continued to slow down in February, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said the government would continue to ensure sufficient supply of commodities, while steadily increasing agricultural productivity. “The government will sustain its efforts to keep inflation low and manageable to protect the purchasing power of Filipinos. As we expect six to 13 typhoons to develop from March to August 2025, the Department of Agriculture will implement the La Niña action plan to restore agricultural productive capacity in areas likely to be affected by continuous rainfall, flooding and landslides,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said. “The action plan includes water management, financial assistance and credit support and a massive information campaign on La Niña,” he said further.
To mitigate the effect of rising fuel prices on farmers, the Agriculture department implemented the Fuel Assistance to Farmers Project. As of Jan. 28, 74.3 percent of the targeted beneficiaries for 2023 have received fuel assistance cards. The NEDA said 54.1 percent of the targeted beneficiaries have been processed for funding last year. Last month, President Marcos signed Executive Order (EO) 83, which grants real property tax relief to independent power producers operating under Build-Operate-Transfer contracts with government-owned or -controlled corporations.
The EO is seen to help ensure stable electricity supply. In the livestock industry, measures to address the African Swine Fever are being accelerated with the DA-Bureau of Animal Industry advised to speed up the collection of post-vaccination results from 28 hog farms and quickly submit the analysis to the Food and Drug Administration to hasten the product registration for the commercial use of the vaccine. The NEDA also cited the Department of Science and Technology’s Brisk Response through In-location Diagnostics and Genomic Sequencing System for Animal Disease Testing and Vaccine Research Project to be completed in August 2026. “The downward trend in headline inflation indicates that our efforts to combat inflationary pressures are working. However, we will not be complacent in addressing causes of commodity price increases, particularly for food, to help uplift the lives of poor and vulnerable Filipino families, especially,” Balisacan said.
Source: philstar.com
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