Inflation slides further in May

The headline inflation further slid last month as coronavirus pandemic continued to drag down consumer demand.

The rate of increase in consumer prices, or inflation, clocked in at 2.1 percent in May, slightly lower compared with 2.2 percent in April. Year-on-year, the rate slowed from 3.2 percent.

“Slowdown in the headline inflation in May 2020 was mainly driven by the 5.6 percent annual drop in the transport index,” National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa said.

The downtrend in the inflation rate was also due to slower price

increases recorded in the food and non-alocholic beverages (2.9 percent), clothing and footwear (2.4 percent), furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house (4.1 percent) and recreation and culture (1.4 percent).

On the contrary, a higher inflation of 18 percent was noted in alcoholic beverages and tobacco, while housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels; health; communication; education; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services retained their rates in April.

Core inflation in May, meanwhile, retained its previous month’s 2.9 percent, but still lower compared with 3.5 percent in the same month last year.

Inflation for food at the national level slowed to 2.9 percent in May from 3.4 percent in the previous month.

Annual decreases were still noted in the indices of rice at 2.7 percent; corn, 0.7 percent; and sugar, jam, honey, chocolate and confectionery, 0.8 percent.

The indices of other food groups also exhibited slower annual increments during the month, except for other cereals, flour, cereal preparation, bread, pasta and other bakery products; and oils and fats, whose annual growth rates were higher at 2.7 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively.

In Metro Manila, inflation was higher at 1.4 percent in May compared with 1.2 percent in April.

The transport index registered a slower annual decline of 1.8 percent in May 2020 than its annual drop in the previous month of 6.5 percent.

On the other hand, gains decelerated for food and nonalcoholic beverages at 2.7 percent; alcoholic beverages and tobacco at 13.8 percent; and recreation and culture, 0.6 percent.

Following the same trend as that of the national level, inflation in areas outside Metro Manila eased further to 2.2 percent in May, 2020 from 2.5 percent in the previous month and 3.1 percent in May, 2019.