The increase in prices of meat, vegetables and electricity set the province’s inflation rate at 4.2 percent in June 2024 from 3.6 percent in May.

In a virtual press conference, Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) provincial head, Engineer Ariel Fortuito, said the June 2024 inflation rate was higher than 0.6 percent in May, but lower than 0.5 percent and 1.6 percent in April and March, respectively.

He noted that the rise and fall in inflation shows the swing in the average price level of goods and services in the province over a certain month.

Fortuito said food and non-alcoholic beverages were the main contributors to last month’s inflation rate that rose to 6.4 percent.

He also reported that the main drivers of the June 2024 inflation rate increase are still food and non-alcoholic beverages, with a 6.4 percent increase in comparison to 5.3 percent recorded in May 2024.

Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (particularly in electricity) were another driver, with 4.4 percent increase compared to May with three percent.

Fortuito said one of the factors that drove food prices up might be the reported damage to crop production due to the El Niño phenomenon.

At the national level, the country’s inflation rate slowed down to 3.7 percent in June versus the previous month at 3.9 percent.

PSA’s inflation report serves as the basis for the government and private sector to create policies to combat the faster price surges of goods and services.

Inflation is the gradual rise in prices of goods and services, which reduces the purchasing power of a currency. (PIA-7 Negros Oriental)