1.  Inflation in Davao del Norte

The headline inflation of Davao del Norte decreased by 3.2 percentage points in June 2023 (2.5%) compared to its inflation rate in the same month last year, which was recorded at 5.7 percent. The current inflation rate (2.5%) of the province is lower compared to the headline inflation of the Philippines and Davao Region, which stood at 5.4 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively (Table A).

The average inflation of Davao del Norte for the year 2023 stood at 4.9 percent (Table B).

Table C showed that the June 2023 inflation of Davao del Norte is mostly contributed by the indices of food and non-alcoholic beverages (6.0%); health (7.9%); and personal care, and miscellaneous goods and services (2.9%). 

Despite the decrease of inflation rate in the province, an upward trend in June 2023 compared to their corresponding rates in May 2023 were observed in Table D for the following commodities:

·      Information and communication (from 1.1% to 1.3%);

·      Restaurants and accommodation services (from 0.0% to 1.0%); and

·      Personal care, and miscellaneous goods and services (from 2.7% to 2.9%)

It can also be observed that the commodities for education services and financial services has shown no sign of increase nor decrease in inflation rate in comparison to their corresponding rates in the last month. The same is true for the index for food which steadied at 6.1 percent from May to June 2023 (Table E.) 

Table E. Inflation Trend of Sub-items under Food: All income Households in Percent (2018=100)

Source: Retail Price Survey of Commodities for the Generation of Consumer Price Index Philippine Authority

4.  Purchasing Power of Peso

The Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) measures the current value of the peso in reference to its value in the base year. It has an inverse relationship with the Cosumer Price Index (CPI), which means that if the CPI increases, the PPP decreases.

Figure 2 showed that the PPP for the province of Davao del Norte steadied at 0.86 from May 2023 to June 2023. This suggests that Php100.00 in 2018 is currently valued at PhP86.00.

Consumer Price Index (CPI). An indicator of the change in the average retail prices of a fixed basket of goods and services commonly purchased by households relative to a base year.

Based Period. A reference date at which the index is equal to 100. The Base year is 2018.

Inflation Rate. The rate of change of the CPI expressed in percent. It is interpreted in terms of declining purchasing power of peso.

Purchasing Power of Peso. The measure of how much the peso in the base period is worth in the current period.

Note: Consumer Price Indices (CPI) and inflation rates by province and selected cities are posted at the PSA website (https://openstat.psa.gov.ph/).