The Philippines’ inflation rate rose to 3.3% in November 2020, as disasters placed upward price pressures on select agricultural commodities during the month.

The latest figure reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority on Friday, December 4, is higher than the 2.5% recorded in October 2020 and the highest since April 2019.

It is also beyond the government’s revised target range of 2.4% to 2.6% for 2020.

National Statistician Dennis Mapa said prices of vegetables (14.6%), meat (8.2%), and fish (5.3%) pushed the food index at the national level to 4.5%.

Year-to-date, inflation stands at 2.6%, the upper end of the target.

Luzon was badly hit by tropical cyclones in November – Super Typhoon Rolly (Goni) and Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco), which resulted in billions of pesos in agricultural damage.

The two tropical cyclones struck at a time when provinces were still reeling from the impact of Typhoon Quinta (Molave), which ravaged parts of Luzon late October.

Regions

Inflation in the National Capital Region (NCR) picked up to 3.5% in November, driven mainly by higher prices of food, tobacco, and alcoholic drinks.

Rice prices were noticeably much higher in the capital as compared to areas outside NCR.

Inflation in areas outside NCR stood at 3.3%. Bicol posted the highest at 5.5%, while Central Visayas posted the slowest rate at 1.1%.

Meanwhile, inflation for the poor or bottom 30% income households accelerated further to 3.6% in November, the highest since March 2019.

This was due to higher food and transportation prices.

Poor households in Metro Manila felt the inflation rate kick to 6.2%, the highest rate since December 2018.

In areas outside NCR, inflation for poor households rose to 3.6%. – Rappler.com