Photo courtesy of PNA
Inflation in the Negros Island Region slowed to 4.9 percent in June from 5.4 percent in May, keeping the region with the lowest inflation rate nationwide, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported Thursday.
PSA-NIR Statistical Operations and Coordination Division Chief Statistical Specialist Ma. Goretti Novilla said the latest figure was still higher than the 0.5 percent recorded in June last year.
The region’s average inflation rate for the first half of 2026 settled at 3.0 percent.
Novilla said the June slowdown was driven mainly by transport, which accounted for 61.9 percent of the deceleration.
Restaurants and accommodation services contributed 17.0 percent to the easing, while education services accounted for 15.7 percent.
Despite the slower rate, food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, and restaurants and accommodation services remained the biggest contributors to overall inflation in the region.
Among commodities, gasoline posted the highest inflation at 36.9 percent, followed by liquefied petroleum gas at 32.5 percent, corn at 21.0 percent, restaurants and cafés at 7.1 percent, and rice at 2.0 percent.
By area, inflation slowed in Negros Oriental to 6.2 percent, in Siquijor to 9.5 percent, and in Negros Occidental to 3.5 percent, while Bacolod City posted a slight increase to 7.1 percent. For the bottom 30 percent income households, inflation eased to 4.8 percent in June from 5.0 percent in May.
