Food, transport, and education services drove the Negros Island Region’s (NIR) inflation uptrend to 5.6 percent in July from 4.9 percent in June, while Negros Oriental’s rate decelerated to 6 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said Thursday, August 13.
Chief statistical specialist and head of PSA – Negros Oriental, Ariel T. Fortuito, said during a press conference that the July inflation rate for all income households in the province was pegged at 6 percent.
“This is slightly lower than the 6.2 percent inflation rate in June, although much higher than the -0.3 percent inflation of July 2025,” Fortuito said.
The main drivers of the deceleration of the July inflation rate in Negros Oriental were food and non-alcoholic beverages with 7.1 percent inflation and a 65.6 percent share in the downward trend; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, at 1.5 percent (26.8 percent); and transport at 13.2 percent (6.1 percent)
The main contributors to the deceleration in July were food and non-alcoholic beverages, with 7.1 percent inflation (46.3 percent); transport, 13.2 percent (18.8 percent); and education services, 23.4 percent (9.1 percent).
Under the food and non-alcoholic beverages commodity group, corn posted a 28.8 percent inflation in July versus 27.8 percent in the previous month, while rice posted 13.1 percent inflation, slightly lower than 16.6 percent in June.
For the transport sector, gasoline posted a 37.1 percent inflation rate in July, slightly lower than 40 percent in June.
Tertiary education posted 42.5 percent, up from 31.3 percent in the previous month, within the education services commodity group.
Food inflation in Negros Oriental slightly eased to 7.3 percent compared with 8 percent in June.
The main drivers under the food groups were rice at 13.1 percent and meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals at -3.8 percent.
Meanwhile, the July inflation rate for the bottom 30 percent of households was pegged at 7.7 percent, Fortuito said.
This was lower than the 8.4 percent inflation rate in June.
The main drivers of the deceleration of July inflation for this specific household sector are food and non-alcoholic beverages; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels; and transport.
The same groups were also the main contributors to the deceleration of inflation last month.
On the other hand, the Negros Island Region (NIR), comprising the provinces of Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, Siquijor, and the highly urbanized Bacolod City, logged a 5.6 percent inflation rate in July.
Ma. Goretti M. Novilla, chief statistical specialist of the Statistical Operations and Coordination Division of PSA-NIR, said the main sources of the acceleration of the inflation rate in the region are food and non-alcoholic beverages at 4.7 percent, with a 40 percent share in the uptrend; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, with 3.7 percent inflation (31.5 percent); and education services, with 2.8 percent inflation (8.3 percent).
Food inflation in the region was pegged at 4.7 percent, higher than 3.9 percent in June.
In July, Bacolod City posted a 7.3 percent inflation rate, higher than 7.1 percent in June; Siquijor province posted 8.3 percent in July, down from 9.5 percent in June; and Negros Occidental posted 4.6 percent in July, down from 3.5 percent in June.*PNA
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