Pangasinan: The inflation rate in Pangasinan experienced a slowdown, decreasing from 4.1 percent in August to 3.8 percent in September, while La Union’s inflation rate remained steady at 1.4 percent, as reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Wednesday. The deceleration in Pangasinan’s inflation was primarily attributed to a significant reduction in electricity costs.
According to Philippines News Agency, Edgar Norberte, the PSA-Pangasinan chief statistical specialist, highlighted that electricity contributed a substantial 91.9 percent to the deceleration in inflation. In August, the electricity inflation rate stood at 6.5 percent, but it decreased to 3.7 percent in September. Jopet Oma±a, Science Research Specialist II from the Department of Energy’s Electric Power Industry Management Division in Luzon, noted that three distribution utilities in Pangasinan reduced their residential electricity rates by an average of PHP0.50 per kilowatt hour.
Further reductions in inflation were seen in other sectors, including personal care, miscellaneous goods and services, clothing and footwear, and health, which saw slight decreases in their rates. However, food, non-alcoholic beverages, and transport sectors recorded a minor uptick in inflation rates.
In La Union, PSA chief statistical specialist Danites Te±ido mentioned that housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels were the major contributors to the province’s steady inflation, with education services and alcoholic beverages and tobacco also playing significant roles. While some food items, including pork, poultry, pelagic fish, and bananas experienced a drop in inflation rates, transport and housing-related sectors saw slight increases.
Senior Economic Development Specialist Kathleen Irah Magaliao from the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development attributed the stable inflation rate in La Union to a price freeze following the devastation caused by Typhoon Emong in July. The freeze covered basic necessities, prime commodities, essential medicines, agricultural produce, livestock, and fisheries, with a moratorium on loans resulting in zero inflation in financial services during the period.