PH inflation decelerated to its lowest in July – PSA

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MANILA — The rate of inflation decelerated to 4.7% in July, marking its lowest point since March 2022, according to a report by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Friday.

This ongoing slowdown can be attributed primarily to a reduced uptick in costs related to housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels.

The 4.7% figure represents a decline from June’s 5.4% and a noteworthy drop from July of the previous year, which registered at 6.4%.

These numbers align with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) projected range of 4.1% to 4.9% for the month and slightly undercuts the 4.8% median reported in an economist poll conducted by mainstream media.

The PSA further noted that this is the most muted inflation rate recorded since March 2022, which stood at 4.0%.

Excluding the influence of volatile food and energy items, core inflation saw a significant reduction to 6.7%, down from June’s 7.4%.

Considering the year-to-date perspective, headline inflation remained at 6.8%, while core inflation settled at 7.6%, both of which surpass the central bank’s targeted range of 2.0% to 4.0%. (ai/mnm)