The Philippines' inflation rate slightly eased to 6.1% in August 2026 from 6.2% in July, marking the fourth consecutive month of decline, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Friday, September 4.
Despite the slowdown, the August inflation rate remained significantly higher than the 1.5% recorded in the same month last year.
The latest figure followed a three-year high of 7.2% in April. Average inflation from January to August stood at 5.2%, still above the government’s target range of 2% to 4%.
The PSA said the slower inflation in August was primarily driven by the slower annual increase in prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, as well as housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages posted a 4.6% inflation rate in August, down from 5.2% in July. The commodity group accounted for 75% of the decline in overall inflation.
Meanwhile, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels recorded a 7.9% inflation rate, slower than 8.2% in the previous month. The group contributed 21.3% to the decline in headline inflation.
The decline in food inflation was mainly due to a 3.4% annual decrease in prices of vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses, reversing the 8.4% increase recorded in July.
Prices of fish and other seafood also rose at a slower pace, with inflation easing to 6.6% from 7.8%, while inflation for corn slowed to 18.2% from 21.9% and oils and fats to 6.7% from 7.4%.
However, rice inflation accelerated to 19.4% in August from 17.1% in July.
Other commodity groups that recorded slower annual price increases included information and communication, recreation, sport and culture, and education services.
On the other hand, faster price increases were recorded in alcoholic beverages and tobacco, furnishings and household equipment, health, transport, and personal care and miscellaneous goods and services.
Transport recorded the highest inflation among the commodity groups at 13.5%, up from 11.9% in July.
The top contributors to overall inflation in August were food and non-alcoholic beverages, with a 28.8% share or 1.8 percentage points; housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, with a 26.6% share or 1.6 percentage points; and transport, with a 20.1% share or 1.2 percentage points.
Meanwhile, core inflation, which excludes selected food and energy items, eased to 4.1% in August from 4.2% in July. It was still higher than the 2.7% core inflation recorded in August 2025.
