Eastern Visayas

The average prices of goods and services for the bottom 30% income households in Eastern Visayas registered faster annual price decrease at 0.8 percent in June 2025, from 0.4 percent annual price decrease in April 2025. This is the lowest IR for this income group since the 1.8 annual price decrease recorded in November 2019. This brings the regional average IR from January to May 2025 to zero percent. Moreover, the regional IR for this income group was lower than the zero percent national IR recorded in May 2025. The region’s IR for the bottom 30% income households in May 2024 was higher at 4.6 percent (Tables 1 and 2).

Main Drivers of the Downtrend of the Regional Inflation

The main driver to the downtrend of the regional inflation for the bottom 30% income households in May 2025 was the faster annual price decrease in the heavily weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages commodity group registered at 2.5 percent from 1.8 percent annual price decrease in April 2025. Transport also contributed to the downtrend of the regional IR with a faster annual price decline at 1.5 percent during the month, from 0.9 percent annual price decline in April 2025.

In addition, slower IRs were noted in the following commodity groups during the month:

a. Restaurants and accommodation services, 0.8 percent from 0.9 percent;
b. Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance, 0.8 percent from 0.9 percent; and
c. Clothing and footwear, 0.7 percent from 0.8 percent.

On the other hand, compared with their IRs in April 2025, higher IRs were observed in the following commodity groups:

a. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, 3.3 percent from 2.7 percent;
b. Health, 1.5 percent from 1.4 percent; and
c. Recreation, sport and culture, 2.2 percent from 1.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the following commodity groups retained their previous month’s IRs:

a. Alcoholic beverages and tobacco, 4.3 percent;
b. Information and communication, 0.2 percent;
c. Education services, 12.7 percent; and
d. Personal care, and miscellaneous goods and services, 1.6 percent,

The IR for financial services remained at zero percent during the month (Table 3).

Main Contributors to the Regional Inflation

The top two commodity groups that contributed to the May 2025 regional IR for the bottom 30% income households were the following:

a. Food and non-alcoholic beverages, with 188.6 percent share or -1.51 percentage point; and
b. Transport, with 11.0 percent share or -0.09 percentage point.

Food Inflation

Food inflation for the bottom 30% income households in Eastern Visayas recorded a faster annual price decline of 2.8 percent in May 2025 from 2.1 percent annual price decline in April 2025. In May 2024, food inflation for this income group was posted at 8.1 percent (Table 3).

The decrease of food IR for the bottom 30% income households was primarily brought about by the faster annual price decrease in rice at 14.8 percent in May 2025, from a 12.4 percent annual price decrease in April 2025. The slower IR in ready-made food and other food products not elsewhere classified at 3.6 percent in May 2025 from 4.9 percent in April 2025 also contributed to the downtrend of the food inflation.

Moreover, the following food groups recorded slower IRs during the month in review:

a. Meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals,7.0 percent from 7.2 percent;
b. Vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses, 8.6 percent from 8.8 percent;
c. Fruits and nuts, 1.7 percent from 1.8 percent;
d. Corn, 1.4 percent from 1.5 percent; and
e. Flour, bread and other bakery products, pasta products, and other cereals, 1.5 percent from 1.7 percent.

In addition, sugar, confectionery and desserts registered faster annual price decrease at 0.9 percent during the month from 0.4 percent annual price decrease in April 2025.

In contrast, the commodity groups of fish and other seafood, and milk, other dairy products and eggs recorded faster IRs during the month at 5.4 percent and 4.0 percent, from 4.8 percent and 2.9 percent in April 2025, respectively.

Meanwhile, oils and fats commodity group retained its previous month’s IR at 0.3 percent.

Main Contributors to the Food Inflation

The annual price decrease in food pulled down the regional IR for the bottom 30% income household in April 2025 by 1.62 percentage points. The food groups with the highest contribution to the annual price decrease in food during the month were the following:

a. Cereals and cereal products, which includes rice, corn, flour, bread, and other bakery products, pasta products, and other cereals, with 195.9 percent share or -5.48 percentage points; and
b. Sugar, confectionery and desserts, with 0.8 percent share or -0.02 percentage point.

Inflation Rate by Region

In comparison with their IRs in April 2025, 10 regions registered lower IRs for the bottom 30% income households in May 2025, six (6) regions registered higher IRs, while the remaining two (2) retained their previous month’s IRs. Eastern Visayas’ annual price decline for this income group at 0.8 percent ranked fifth among the regions with fast annual declines during the month in review, In May 2025, Davao Region and BARMM recorded the fastest annual decline of -2.0 percent. On the other hand, Ilocos Region recorded the highest IR at 1.9 percent (Figure 2 and Table 4).

Inflation Rate by Province

Relative to their IRs for the bottom 30% income households in April 2025, Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, Southern Leyte, and the lone Highly Urbanized City of Tacloban recorded lower IRs in May 2025. On the other hand, only Eastern Samar registered higher IR while Biliran retained its previous month’s IR.

For this income group, only Leyte registered a positive IR among the provinces at 0.2 percent. The rest of the provinces had annual price drop offs, with Samar recording the fastest decline at 1.9 percent. This was followed by Southern Leyte with 1.8 percent annual decline, Northern Samar with 1.7 annual price decline, and Biliran and Eastern Samar both with 0.6 percent annual decline. Meanwhile, Tacloban City recorded 0.2 percent annual price decrease in May 2025. (Figure 3 and Table 5).

TECHNICAL NOTES

The CPI for the bottom 30% income households is compiled by the PSA to measure the changes of prices of commodities commonly purchased by the families that belong to the bottom 30% income decile. The process of price collection and CPI computation is the same as that of the CPI for all income households. However, there is a separate market basket and weights for the CPI for the bottom 30% income households.

BASE YEAR - is a period at which the index number is set to 100. It is the reference point of the index number series. The CPI is rebased from 2012 to 2018.

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (CPI) - is an indicator of the change in the average prices of a fixed basket of goods and services commonly purchased by households relative to a base year.

DEFLATION - is the decline in prices for goods and services that happens when the inflation rate dips below zero percent.

INFLATION RATE (IR) - is the annual rate of change or the year-on-year changes in CPI. It indicates how fast or how slow price changes over two time periods (year-on-year). Contrary to common knowledge, low inflation does not necessarily connote that prices of commodities are falling. It means that prices continue to increase but at a slower rate.

MARKET BASKET - refers to a sample of goods and services commonly purchased by the households. The market basket for CPI was updated using the results of the 2021 Survey of Key Informants (SKI). The commodities included in the 2018-based CPI market basket were the modal commodities which were considered as the most commonly purchased/availed commodities by the households. The commodities in the 2018-based CPI market basket were grouped/classified according to the 2020 Philippine Classification of Individual 
Consumption According to Purpose (PCOICOP).

MONITORING OF PRICES - involves establishing baseline information for the prices of the items in the base year and monitoring the prices of the items on a regular basis. Data collection for the CPI is done by the provincial office twice a month, except for petroleum products which are monitored on a weekly basis, every Friday. First collection phase is done during the first five days of the month while the second phase is on the 15th to 17th day of the month.

PURCHASING POWER OF PESO (PPP) - gives an indication of the real value of peso (how much it is worth) in a given period relative to its value in the base period. It is computed as the reciprocal of CPI multiplied by 100.

RETAIL PRICE - refers to the actual price at which retailers sell a commodity on spot or earliest delivery, usually in small quantities for consumption and not for resale. It is confined to transactions on cash basis in the free market and excludes underground prices and prices of commodities that are on sale as in summer sales, anniversary sales, Christmas sales, etc.

WEIGHTS - is a value attached to a commodity or group of commodities to indicate the relative importance of that commodity or group of commodities in the market basket. The weights for the 2018-based CPI were derived from the expenditure data of the 2018 Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES). The weight for each commodity/group of commodities is the proportion of the expenditure commodity/group of commodities to the total national expenditure. The sum of the weights of the commodity groups at the national level is equal to 100.

SGD. WILMA A. PERANTE
Regional Director