Starting February 2022, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released the rebased Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all income households to base year 2018, from base year 2012 as announced in the press release number 2022-01 dated 04 January 2022. The CPI series for all income households for January 2022 onwards will be 2018-based.

Year on Year Inflation rate in Central Visayas was recorded at 5.1 percent

• The inflation rate in Central Visayas for February 2022 further accelerated to 5.1 percent which was higher compared to last year of the same period at 1.1 percent. In January 2022, inflation was at 5.0 percent. (Figure 1)

• Inflation rate during the month was the highest since January 2019. (Table A)

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• The uptrend of the February 2022 inflation was mainly driven by the increase in the inflation of the Transport index at 4.8 percent during the month from the -4.0 in January 2022. The uptrend in inflation was also brought about by the increase in the annual increment recorded in the indices of the following commodity groups during the month: (Figure 2)

o   Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco; 5.3 percent;

o   Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas, and Other Fuels, 4.6 percent; and

o   Restaurants and Accommodation Services, 1.3 percent

• Meanwhile, annual mark-ups slowed down in the indices of the following commodity groups during the period:(Figure 2)

o   Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages; 7.9 percent;

o   Furnishing, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance, 5.3 percent; and

o   Personal Care, and Miscellaneous Goods and Services, 1.9 percent.

• Indices of the rest of the commodity groups retained their previous month’s annual growth rates: (Figure 2)

o   Financial Services, 45.1 percent;

o   Health; 3.3 percent;

o   Clothing and Footwear, 0.6 percent;

o   Recreation, Sport and Culture, 0.1 percent;

o   Education Services, 0.0 percent; and

o   Information and Communication, 0.0 percent.

February 2022 CPI in Central Visayas was recorded at 108.8

• The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Central Visayas was posted at 108.8 in February 2022. This means that on average, prices of goods and services in the region increased by 8.8 percent from the base year 2018. (Figure 3)

• The CPI of the region in February 2022 increased by 5.12 percent from February 2021 and decreased by 0.18 percent from January 2022.

• Higher annual rate was noted in the indices of each commodity group from January and February 2022 compared to January and February 2021 except for Transport which posted a decrease in the indices in January 2021 and 2022. Information and Communication and Education Services posted a constant index in January and February 2021 and 2022 at 100.9 and 106.3, respectively. (Table B)

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Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) was recorded at 0.92 in February 2022

• The Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) in Central Visayas was posted at 0.92 in February 2022. A downtrend movement was recorded from February 2021 to February 2022, except in August 2021 which posted an increase at 0.96. The month of February 2021 recorded the highest PPP at 0.97 while January and February 2022 recorded the lowest PPP from the series. (Figure 4)

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TECHNICAL NOTES

The Philippine Statistics Authority generates and announces the monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) based on a nationwide survey of prices for a given basket of goods and services. Two important indicators, the inflation rate and purchasing power of the peso (PPP), are derived from the CPI which are important in monitoring price stability and the value of the country’s currency. 

The CPI is an indicator of the change in the average retail prices of a fixed basket of goods and services commonly purchased by households relative to a base year.

Retail Price is the price at which a commodity is sold for spot in small quantities for consumption.

Base Period/Base Year is the period, usually a year, at which the index number is set to 100. It is the reference point of the index number series.

Market Basket is a term used to refer to a sample of goods and services that are commonly purchased and bought by an average Filipino household.

Weight is a value attached to a commodity or ground of commodities to indicate the relative importance of that commodity or group of commodities in the market basket.

Inflation Rate is equivalent to a decline in the purchasing power of the peso. It is the change in the CPI over a specific period of time (usually a month or a year). That is, where:

CPI₁ - is the CPI in the previous period
CPI₂ - is the CPI in the current period

The Purchasing Power of the Peso (PPP) is a measure of the real value of the peso in a given period relative to a chosen reference period. It is computed by getting the reciprocal of the CPI and multiplying the result by 100. That is,

Headline Inflation is the rate of change in the weighted average prices of all goods and services in the CPI basket.

Approved by:

(SGD.) ARIEL E. FLORENDO
Regional Director