The headline inflation rate of Negros Oriental dropped to 3.6 percent in May compared to 4.7 percent the previous month, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

Jose Ariel Fortuito, PSA-Negros Oriental provincial chief statistical analyst, said the main contributors to the decrease in the inflation rate are housing, water, and electricity; food and non-alcoholic beverages; furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance.

The inflation rate for May 2023 was pegged at 7.3 percent, he noted during a virtual presser on June 14.

“The average inflation from January to May 2024 is 4.7 percent,” he said.

He said headline inflation is “increasing but slower in rate” because the baseline was in 2018, and prices were much lower then.

The inflation rates in the previous months were 4.6 percent in January, 4.5 percent in February and 5.8 percent in March.

The commodity groups that posted lower inflation rates in May are housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, three percent from 5.5 percent; food and non-alcoholic beverages, 5.3 percent from 6.5 percent; and furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance, 0.6 percent from 1.2 percent.

Restaurants and accommodation services also dropped to 2.6 percent from three percent; alcoholic beverages and tobacco, 2.9 percent from 3.9 percent; and personal care and miscellaneous goods and services, 2.4 percent from 2.7 percent.

Health also lowered to 5.3 percent from 5.6 percent, while clothing and footwear decreased slightly to 1.8 percent from two percent. (PNA)