April inflation rate in Region 7 rises to 10 percent

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INFLATION in Region 7 accelerated sharply to 10.8 percent in April 2026, up from 7.4 percent in March, driven mainly by rising food prices, transport costs, and housing-related expenses as global oil shock persist.

The April figure marks a steep increase from the 2.0 percent inflation rate recorded in the same month last year, highlighting sustained price pressures across the region.

This is according to Philippine Statistics Authority-Central Visayas (PSA-7) officer-in-charge Director Wilma Perante during the inflation report dissemination on Wednesday, May 13.

Inflation is the rate at which the general prices of goods and services increase over time. When inflation rises, the purchasing power of money falls, meaning the same amount of money buys fewer items than before.

Why it grew?

Data released showed that food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the primary driver of inflation, posting a faster annual increase of 14.5 percent from 10.1 percent in March.

Transport costs also surged to 22.5 percent from 8.2 percent, while housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose to 6.0 percent from 4.2 percent.

Food alone accounted for the largest share of the inflation uptick, contributing 5.67 percentage points or 52.5 percent to the overall rate.

Transport followed with a 19.1 percent share or 2.06 percentage points, while housing-related expenses contributed 1.33 percentage points or 12.3 percent.

A closer look at food inflation showed that several key commodities posted sharp increases. Vegetables, tubers, and plantains recorded a 58.8 percent inflation rate, while fish and other seafood rose by 27.2 percent.

Cereals and cereal products rose to 12.3 percent, while overall food inflation climbed to 15.4 percent in April 2026, up from 10.7 percent in March and 0.8 percent a year ago.

Transport inflation surged due to higher fuel costs, with gasoline up 56.2 percent and diesel at 109.1 percent. Passenger transport by sea and inland waterways also increased by 19.1 percent, contributing to the sector’s 22.5 percent rate.

Housing costs increased, with electricity at 11.3 percent and liquefied hydrocarbons at 30.9 percent, pushing the sector’s inflation to 6.0 percent.

Other sectors also recorded higher inflation, including restaurants and accommodation services at 10.5 percent, personal care at 3.6 percent, furnishings at 6.9 percent, and information and communication at 1.0 percent.

Slower inflation

Alcoholic beverages and tobacco eased to 4.7 percent from 5.7 percent, while health slightly declined to 3.3 percent from 3.4 percent. Education services, recreation, and financial services remained unchanged during the period.

The report also showed that inflation for the bottom 30 percent of income households climbed faster at 14.0 percent in April 2026, compared with 8.3 percent in March and 0.5 percent in April 2025, indicating that lower-income families bore a heavier burden from rising prices.

For this income group, food inflation alone reached 16.5 percent, while housing-related expenses surged to 15.1 percent and transport rose to 19.0 percent.

These sectors were also the main contributors to the overall inflation experienced by low-income households.

Other parts

Across the region, Cebu province recorded the highest inflation rate at 12.9 percent, followed by Lapu-Lapu City at 11.4 percent and Mandaue City at 10.7 percent.

Cebu City posted 9.4 percent, while Bohol logged the lowest at 7.2 percent.

For the whole country, inflation surged to 7.2 percent in April, the highest level in three years, as rising oil prices continued to drive up fuel and food costs.

The latest figure nearly doubled the 4.1 percent recorded in March and was significantly higher than the 1.4 percent posted in April last year.

It marked the fastest inflation rate since March 2023 and the sharpest increase since the spike recorded between December 1993 and January 1994, when inflation rose from 7.4 percent to 12.8 percent.

What will happen?

Inflation may remain elevated in the coming months as higher fuel costs continue to spill over into food, transport, and logistics prices, analysts warned.

In a Philippine Star article, economists said the bigger concern is not just rising pump prices, but the rapid pass-through of higher diesel and transport costs to goods and services, especially food.

Citi, a global bank and financial services firm, said the April spike was largely driven by food inflation, noting that higher diesel prices quickly increased logistics and delivery expenses.

It warned that second-round effects could persist even if fuel prices start to ease.

The bank added that global oil supply pressures, a weaker peso, and a possible El Niño could further push prices up.(MyTVCebu)