Bicol inflation rate decelerates to 1.5%

By Connie Calipay

LEGAZPI CITY --- The Philippine Statistics Authority in (PSA-5) reported on Wednesday that the inflation rate in the region slowed down from 2.2 percent in May to 1.5 percent in June.

PSA-5 chief statistician specialist Rey Merjilla said the region’s average inflation from January to June 2025 reached 2.2 percent.

“The downtrend in the overall inflation in June 2025 was primarily influenced by the decrease in the prices of food and non alcoholic beverages particularly on vegetables, tubers, cereals, fish and seafood,” he said.

Merjilla added housing, water, electricity and other fuels also contributed to the overall inflation in the region.

“Personal care and miscellaneous also helped in the overall inflation for the region,” he added.

Merjilla said the top five contributors to the June inflation are meat of pigs, restaurants, cafes and the like, rentals, meat of poultry and fresh water fish.

PSA data showed the provincial inflation rates of the six provinces in Bicol region as: Albay --1.6 percent; Camarines Sur --1.2 percent; Sorsogon --1.8 percent; Catanduanes --3.1 percent; Masbate --1.5 percent and Camarines Norte --0.5 percent.

Inflation is the annual rate of change or the year-on-year change of the consumer price index expressed in percentage, and is interpreted in terms of the declining purchasing power of money. (PNA)