Inflation picks up to 13-month high

Inflation continued to accelerate in February to hit the fastest pace in 13 months due mainly to higher prices of food, non-alcoholic beverages, and housing and utilities, data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Thursday showed.

Consumer prices grew by 2.4% in the past month, faster than the 2.0% in January, and the 2.1% in February 2025. This is the fastest in 12 months since inflation clocked in at 2.9% in January 2025.

“The uptrend in the overall inflation in February 2026 was primarily influenced by the faster annual increment in the index of the heavily weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages at 1.8%,” the PSA said, with the index holding a 29.5% share to the overall inflation rate.

Core inflation — which excludes selected food and energy items — stood at 2.9% in February, up from 2.8% in January and 2.4% in February 2025.

The PSA said housing and utilities also drove consumer prices higher, as the index posted a higher inflation rate of 3.5% in February from 3.3% the same month last year.

Faster annual increases were also recorded in restaurants and accommodation services (4.4%); recreation, sport, and culture (4.3%); health (3.2%); furnishings and household equipment (2.9%); personal care and miscellaneous goods and services (2.8%); and clothing and footwear (2.4%).

Housing and utilities accounted for a 29.9% share to the overall inflation rate, and restaurants and accommodation services with 17.8%

Food inflation recorded a 1.6% inflation rate for the month, faster than the 0.7% in the previous month but lower than the 2.6% in February 2025. This contributed 24.2% to the overall inflation rate.

Prices of rice increased by 3.4% during the month, with faster year-on-year increases seen in corn, flour, fish and other seafood, milk and other dairy products, fruits and nuts, and vegetables.

Meanwhile, lower annual increases were seen in oils and fat, and ready-made food and other food products not elsewhere classified.

Transport prices

The transport index posted a faster annual decline of 0.3% in February from 0.2% in January, but National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said positive inflation could be seen in March following the conflict in the Middle East.

"Yung expectation natin (Our expectation) is this will be in the positive territory,” he told reporters as global oil markets remain volatile due to the conflict between the United States and Iran.

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Wednesday said pump prices could be hiked further due to global developments such as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping corridor.

Pump prices were already increased by P1.90 per liter for gasoline, P1.20 per liter for diesel, and P1.50 per liter for kerosene on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.

“Nakita natin ‘pag tumataas ‘yung presyo ng diesel, gasoline, ‘yun ‘yung una, and then susunod ‘yung price of transport,” Mapa said.

(We see that when prices of diesel and gasoline increase, those are the first, and then transport prices follow.)

This comes as US-Israeli airstrikes killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over the weekend, which American President Donald Trump celebrated. The death was later confirmed by Iranian state media.

Trump has said that combat operations in Iran would continue until all objectives are achieved, as he confirmed that three US service members were killed and there would likely be more casualties. —VAL, GMA Integrated News