Photo courtesy of PSA-11.
Food costs for low-income households in the Davao Region fell by 3.8 percent in 2025, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Thursday.
The PSA said the decline was mainly due to lower prices for cereals and cereal products, which dropped 13.2 percent compared with a 13.8 percent increase in 2024.
Other food groups contributing to the downtrend included fish and seafood, fruits and nuts, vegetables and pulses, and ready-made food products, which all recorded slower price growth than the previous year.
Meanwhile, prices for meat, dairy products, oils and fats, and sugar and sweets saw faster increases, reflecting changing demand and supply conditions in the region.
Overall inflation for the bottom 30 percent income households also fell to -1.1 percent in 2025, largely driven by the drop in food and non-alcoholic beverages.
Slower price growth was noted in alcoholic beverages and tobacco, clothing and footwear, transport, recreation, education services, and restaurant and accommodation services.
Faster annual increases were observed in housing, utilities, health, information and communication, financial services, and personal care and miscellaneous goods.
The agency added that furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance maintained an annual average inflation of 3.5 percent, the same as the previous year.
