March 2010

• Month-on-Month

  On a monthly basis, the General Retail Price Index (GRPI) in the National Capital Region (NCR) continued to post a negative rate of -0.1 percent in March from -0.3 percent in February. Prices of food items and crude materials, inedible except fuels correspondingly declined to -0.9 percent and -0.1 percent from their respective February rates of -0.8 percent and zero growth. Price increases in beverages and tobacco and machinery and transport equipment indexes remained at 0.1 percent and miscellaneous manufactured articles index, 0.2 percent. Meanwhile, the rest of the commodity groups have higher monthly price increments.

  Downward price adjustments were observed in chicken, eggs, fresh vegetables, fresh fruits and fresh fish. In addition, the price of gravel was quoted lower during the month in review. 
   

• Year-on-Year

  The annual growth rate of the GRPI in NCR further decelerated to 3.6 percent in March from 3.9 percent in February. Except for mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials and manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials indexes whose annual price gains were higher at 21.8 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively from their corresponding last month's rates of 16.0 percent and 0.7 percent, all the commodity groups posted slower annual growth rates. The annual price hike in food index slowed down to 3.0 percent in March from 4.3 percent in February; beverages and tobacco, 2.4 percent from 3.1 percent; crude materials, inedible except fuels, 3.1 percent from 3.2 percent; chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats, 2.0 percent from 2.3 percent; machinery and transport equipment, 4.3 percent from 4.6 percent; and miscellaneous manufactured articles, 3.4 percent from 3.7 percent.

Source: National Statistics Office
Manila, Philippines

Page last revised: May 12, 2010