Slower annual uptick of prices of several food items largely contributed to the deceleration of the domestic inflation rate in November 2025 to 1.5 percent from the month-ago’s 1.7 percent.
Date released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Friday showed that alcoholic beverages and tobacco, furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance, and personal care and miscellaneous goods and services also posted a slower rate of price increases.
This brought the 11-month average this year to 1.6 percent, way below the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) 2 to 4 percent target band.
The year-ago inflation rate is 2.5 percent.
Below target
The BSP, in a statement, noted that the November inflation rate is within its 1.1 to 1.9 percent forecast for the month.
For this year, BSP projects inflation “to average below the low-end of the target range in 2025, primarily due to the decline in rice prices in previous months.”
“The outlook for inflation is generally benign, remaining well within the target range over the policy horizon. For 2026 and 2027, inflation is expected to settle within the 3 percent + 1.0 ppt (percentage points) target range,” it said.
The BSP also said expectations for the rate of price increases “remain well-anchored” even as “potential electricity rate adjustments and possible increases in tariffs on rice imports could add some upward pressures.”
“Nonetheless, the risks to the inflation outlook are limited as supply-side pressures are expected to ease,” it said.
BSP said its policy-making Monetary Board also “noted that the outlook for domestic economic growth has weakened.”
This outlook, it said, ‘”reflects in part the impact on business confidence of governance concerns about public infrastructure spending as well as lingering uncertainty from the external environment.”
“Going forward, the Monetary Board will continue to review newly available information and reassess the impact of prior monetary actions in light of evolving economic conditions and their implications for inflation and growth,” it added.
Gains from government measures
Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, in a statement, traced the slower jumps in prices of rice and meat, among others, to several government programs eyed to boost supply, stabilize prices and ensure food security.
He said more sites will be opened for the Benteng Bigas, Meron Na! across all 81 provinces before the end of 2025 to allow more people to benefit from the sale of cheap rice.
He said the Department of Agriculture (DA) “has issued guidelines to strengthen safeguards against African swine fever (ASF) while facilitating safe pork imports, allowing regionalization by recognizing “ASF-free zones’ within DA-accredited exporting countries, permitting imports from these specific areas.”
To help beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) with their electricity expenses, an inter-agency measure is now being finalized to automatically enroll qualified 4Ps beneficiaries under the Lifeline Rate Subsidy, which will make their electricity expenses free.
“The sustained moderation in inflation reflects our commitment to protect consumers and strengthen our economic resilience against global and domestic headwinds. We will continue implementing timely, well-coordinated policies to keep prices stable and ensure progress is felt by every Filipino,” Balisacan added. (PNA)
