TACLOBAN CITY -- Leyte’s inflation rate slightly climbed by 0.4 percentage point in June 2021, from  0.9% in May 2021 to 1.3%  during reference month. Meanwhile, the region’s inflation rate slightly increased by 0.2 percentage point from 3.1% in May 2021 to 3.3% in June 2021. The inflation rate of Leyte was lower than the region’s rate since February last year.

The commodity groups that reported positive inflation rate in Leyte are: Transport (5.6%); Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (2%); Health (1.6%); Furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house (1.5%); Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages (1.4%); Communication (0.7%); Restaurant and Miscellaneous Goods and Services (0.7%); Clothing and footwear (0.5%); and Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (0.3%).

Meanwhile, Recreation and Culture (-3.8%) posted negative inflation rates in June 2021. Education had no changes on its year-on-year CPI during the reference month.

On a month-on-month comparison, four (4) major commodity groups showed no changes in its May and June 2021 inflation rates: Alcoholic beverages and tobacco; Clothing and footwear; Recreation and culture; and Education.

Five (5) major commodity groups posted an increment on its inflation rates. Food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by 0.7 percentage point, from 0.7% in May 2021 to 1.4% in June 2021.  Communication increased by 0.7 percentage point, from 0.0 percent in May to 0.7% in June 2021. Health also showed an increase by 0.6% point, from 1% in May to 1.6% in June. Restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services increased by 0.4 percentage point, from 0.3% in May 2021 to 0.7% in June 2021. Lastly, Housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels increased by 0.3 percentage point during the reference month.

Meanwhile, Transport recorded a decrease of 1.9 percentage points inflation rate from 7.5% in May 2021 to 5.6% in June 2021. Also, Furnishing, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house posted a 0.1 percentage point decrease on its month-on-month inflation rate from 1.6% in May 2021 to 1.5% in June 2021.

The inflation rate is the general rise in prices over a period. It indicates how fast or how slow price changes over two-time periods. Contrary to common knowledge, low inflation does not necessarily connote that prices are falling; instead, it means that prices continue to increase at a slower rate. It is a derived indicator of the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The CPI is a measure of change in the average retail prices of goods and services commonly purchased by a particular group of people in a specific area. The overall CPI in Leyte for June 2021 was 125.6. This implies that the average retail price of goods and services in Leyte is 25.6 percent higher than the average retail prices in 2012 (base year).

The Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) in Leyte was maintained at 80 centavos from April to June 2021. Likewise, the PPP in the region remains at 76 centavos during the reference month.  The 80 centavos purchasing power of the peso in Leyte indicates that the same basket of goods and services worth 80 pesos in 2012 (base year) is worth 100 pesos during the reference period. (PSA Leyte)