CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro (PIA) — The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Oriental Mindoro reported that the inflation rate in the province eased to 5.7 percent in October 2023 from 7.5 percent in September 2023. This makes the province’s average inflation rate from January to October at 8.6 percent while the October 2022 inflation rate was higher at 9.2 percent.
According to PSA Chief Statistical Specialist, Efren C. Armonia, “The downtrend in the overall inflation in the province this October was primarily brought about by the slower year-on-year increase in the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages at 5.3 percent during the month from 8.2 percent in the previous month, while housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels with an inflation rate of 6.3 percent in October 2023 from 9.1 percent in September 2023, also contributed to the downtrend of the headline inflation.”
The top three main contributors in the commodity groups to the October 2023 headline inflation of the province are; food and non-alcoholic beverages with 42.1 percent share or 2.4 percentage points; housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels at 20.4 percentage share or 1.2 percentage points and restaurants and accommodation services with 12.8 percentage share or 0.7 percentage points.
Meanwhile, the food inflation in the province slowed down to 5.5 percent from 8.6 percent in September 2023. In October 2022, food inflation rate was higher at 9.7 percent.
The deceleration of food inflation last month was mainly brought about by the lower annual growth of rice at 6.7 percent during the month from 12.6 percent in September 2023. This was followed by vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses with an inflation rate of 22.8 percent in October 2023 from 37.6 percent in September 2023. (DN/PIA Mimaropa – Oriental Mindoro)
