CV inflation declines to 8.1% in August

CEBU, Philippines — The inflation rate in Central Visayas eased to 8.1 percent in August 2026 from 8.7 percent in July, mainly due to the slower increase in food prices, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)-7.

Despite the slowdown, the August inflation rate remained significantly higher than the 3.0 percent recorded in August 2025.

The PSA-7 said in a statement that the primary source of the deceleration was the slower year-on-year increase in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, which dropped to 8.5 percent in August from 10.7 percent in July.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages accounted for 84.7 percent of the overall deceleration in the region’s inflation rate.

The second major source was restaurants and accommodation services, whose annual inflation eased to 10.3 percent in August from 11.1 percent in July. The sector contributed 7.8 percent to the overall deceleration.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the biggest contributor to Central Visayas’ 8.1 percent inflation, accounting for 3.42 percentage points.

Among food items, cereals and cereal products posted an inflation rate of 11.2 percent and contributed 1.39 percentage points to the overall regional inflation.

Fish and other seafood followed, with an inflation rate of 13.6 percent and a contribution of 0.96 percentage point.

Vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas, and pulses recorded the highest inflation among the three major food contributors at 19.0 percent, contributing 0.57 percentage point to the region’s overall inflation. — /MRM (FREEMAN)