MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ headline inflation rate dropped to its lowest level in over five years in April 2025, falling to 1.4 percent from 1.8 percent in March, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). 

However, while overall prices eased, Filipinos continue to feel the pinch in essential living costs such as housing, rent, and utilities, which saw notable upticks.

The April figure marks the lowest inflation rate since November 2019, when it dipped to 1.2 percent. Year-to-date, the average inflation now stands at 2.0 percent, well below the 3.8 percent posted in the same month last year.

Easing food, transport costs drag inflation down

PSA attributed the inflation slowdown mainly to the significant deceleration in food and non-alcoholic beverage prices, which recorded a mere 0.9 percent increase in April, down from 2.2 percent in March. Transport costs also declined further by 2.1 percent year-on-year, accelerating from the 1.1 percent drop in the previous month.

Other categories that saw slower price increases included:

• Clothing and footwear (1.6 percent from 1.8 percent)
• Information and communication (0.3 percent from 0.4 percent)
• Recreation and culture (2.1 percent from 2.2 percent)
• Personal care and miscellaneous goods (2.5 percent from 2.6 percent)

But housing, utilities post sharp increases

Despite the overall slowdown, several essential sectors bucked the trend. Most notably, housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels surged to 2.9 percent in April from just 1.7 percent in March, making it the top contributor to the month’s overall inflation. This group alone accounted for 0.6 percentage point or 39.5 percent of April’s 1.4 percent inflation.

Other commodity groups that saw increases include:

• Alcoholic beverages and tobacco (3.7 percent from 3.6 percent)
• Health (2.4 percent from 2.2 percent)

Restaurants and accommodation services also contributed to inflation with a 15.2 percent share, while food and non-alcoholic beverages held a 24.6 percent share.

Food inflation cools further

Food inflation eased further to 0.7 percent in April from 2.3 percent in March and a staggering 6.3 percent in April 2024. The drop was mainly driven by the steep decline in rice prices, which fell by 10.9 percent year-on-year—accelerating from the 7.7 percent drop a month earlier.

Other major contributors to the food inflation decline were:

• Vegetables and pulses (2.3 percent from 6.9 percent)
• Fish and seafood (4.3 percent from 5.5 percent)
• Corn (-4.9 percent)
• Sugar and desserts (-0.7 percent)

Still, some food groups experienced rising costs, such as:

• Milk, dairy products, and eggs (4 percentfrom 3.4 percent)
• Oils and fats (4.7 percent from 4 percent)

The largest contributors to food inflation in April were meat (1.4 percent), fish and seafood (0.7 percent), and dairy and eggs (0.3 percent)—despite overall food inflation’s sharp deceleration.