The country’s headline inflation increased to 3.9% in May 2024, a slight increase to 3.8% in the previous month.
This brings the national average inflation for January to May 2024 to 3.5 percent. This is the highest inflation rate in the last 5 months according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The PSA said the primary drivers of acceleration included housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel.
The government vows to step up measures to curb inflation.
“The government will continue to implement lasting policy reforms to ensure we address the drivers of food and non-food inflation sustainably. We want to maintain a macroeconomic environment conducive to investment and high-quality job creation – an environment that would allow us to hit the Marcos administration’s development targets by 2028,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said.
“To help manage food inflation, promote policy stability and investment planning, and enhance food security, the NEDA Board has agreed to reduce the rice duty rate to 15 percent from 35 percent for both in-quota and out-quota imports until 2028,” Balisacan added.
