Philippine inflation slowed to 6.8% in May from 7.2% in April, but a senior official from the Office of the Executive Secretary (OES) warned Saturday that the development is not a cause for celebration, as three key price drivers—oil, electricity, and rice—remain elevated and together account for roughly half of the month’s inflation figure.
Executive Undersecretary Erwin Sta. Ana made the statement in an interview on DZRH News program “Special on Saturday” on June 6, saying the government remains cautious despite the easing, as inflation remains well above the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ 2 to 4% target range.
“Welcome development po ito sa amin, but we remain cautious kasi ang mga price pressures po ay nandiyan pa rin,” Sta. Ana said.
The Philippine Statistics Authority reported on Friday that the May reading fell below the BSP’s own forecast of 7.1 to 7.9% for the month, bringing the year-to-date average to 4.5%.
Sta. Ana said the slowdown was driven largely by easing transport and food costs, with transport inflation cooling to 16.2% in May from 21.4% in April following a series of domestic fuel price rollbacks.
However, electricity inflation rose to 8.9% from 8.3%, driven by higher generation charges, tighter grid supply, and peso depreciation, Sta. Ana said, while rice inflation climbed to 15.6% from 13.7% year-on-year amid rising farm input costs.
“Ang tatlo na iyan—ang langis, bigas, at kuryente—kalahati na ho iyan noong 6.8% na naiulat kahapon,” Sta. Ana said.
He said the government’s efforts are being coordinated under the UPLIFT — or Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport — with the Office of the Executive Secretary playing a coordination role across agencies to address the three price pressures.
“I think it’s not a cause for celebration, bagamat bumaba ang inflation rate natin. Tuloy-tuloy lang po ang mga hakbang ng pamahalaan under the UPLIFT,” Sta. Ana said.
Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the easing of inflation reflected the impact of timely government interventions, but acknowledged that price pressures remain elevated and that well-targeted measures are critical to cushioning the impact of both domestic shocks and external headwinds.
Sta. Ana said the government is also preparing for a severe El Niño expected towards the latter part of the year, with preparations already being factored into the overall price stabilization strategy.
“Hindi po tayo magkakampante sa pagbaba ng inflation rate. Patuloy po natin na tututukan iyan at ia-address po ang mga price pressures,” Sta. Ana said.
