NCR’s retail price growth eases to 2.9% in Nov.

Prices of goods in Metro Manila continued to grow at a slow pace in November, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported.

Based on the survey of eight commodities, the National Capital Region’s (NCR) general retail price index (GRPI) declined further to 2.9 percent from 3.4 percent in October.

It was also lower compared to the six percent recorded in the same month last year.

This brought the year-to-date average of GRPI in NCR to 4.6 percent, still higher compared to 4.3 percent in the same period last year.

Heavily-weighted food index remained the largest contributor to the slow increase of GRPI at 4.7 percent from 5.4 percent in October.

This was followed by mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index which had a faster drop of 3.5 percent during the month from an annual decrease of 0.8 percent in October.

Slower decreases were also noted in beverages and tobacco (4.9 percent from 5 percent); crude materials, inedible except fuels (2.5 percent from 3.5 percent); and chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats (2.6 percent from 2.8 percent).

Manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials (9 percent from 2.1 percent) and miscellaneous manufactured articles (1.3 percent from 1.7 percent).

Meanwhile, the machinery and transport equipment index retained its annual rate of 1.3 percent in October.

November’s inflation, which is the rate at which prices and goods rise, eases to 4.1 percent from 4.9 percent in October. It was the lowest reading in the past 20 months since March of last year.

This, according to the PSA, was caused by the downtrend in the decrease in food inflation to 5.8 percent from 7.1 percent, particularly on vegetables, fish, and meat, among others. — Xander Dave Ceballos