Life appears to be getting harder for Bicolanos: just weeks after the region was reported as the slowest-growing economy in the Philippines in 2025, inflation in the Bicol Region nearly doubled in a single month.
Inflation jumped to 7.6 percent in April 2026 from 4.1 percent in March—outpacing the national inflation rate of 7.2 percent—driven by sharply higher prices of food, transport, and housing-related commodities, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported Thursday, May 7.
The surge compounds an already bleak economic picture for the region, which posted gross regional domestic product growth of only 0.5 percent in 2025—the weakest among all 18 regions and far below the national GDP growth rate of 4.4 percent.
PSA Bicol Regional Director Cynthia Perdiz said the top contributors to the April inflation uptrend were food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, and housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels.
Transport inflation was particularly severe, with gasoline prices rising 57.7 percent and diesel surging 121.4 percent year-on-year.
Housing costs also added pressure, with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) registering 45.1 percent inflation and rentals up by 6.8 percent. Among food items, rice posted 13 percent inflation, while oils and fats rose by 18.2 percent.
Perdiz also flagged potential additional inflationary pressure from the recent unrest of Mayon Volcano, which she said could disrupt agricultural production in Albay and force the province to source goods from other areas at higher transport costs.
Among the six Bicol provinces, Camarines Sur recorded the highest inflation rate at 8.9 percent, well above the regional average, followed by Camarines Norte at 7.5 percent, Sorsogon at 7.3 percent, Albay at 6.8 percent, Catanduanes at 6.3 percent, and Masbate at 6.2 percent.
