Philippines: Inflation soars to near 10-year high in September
Consumer prices rose 0.9% over the prior month in September, rising by the same rate as in August. September’s result came on the back of higher prices for 10 of the 11 components of the index, with food and non-alcoholic beverages, and transport recording the strongest price increases. Meanwhile, prices for education were stable in the month.
Inflation accelerated to a near-decade high of 6.7% in September from 6.4% in August. Consequently, inflation moved further above the upper bound of the Central Bank’s target range for the 2017–2020 period, set at 3.0% plus or minus 1.0 percentage point. Meanwhile, annual average inflation edged up to 4.5% in September from 4.2% in August.