CITY OF DAVAO

1. Headline Inflation

In March 2024, the headline inflation rate in the City of Davao remained at 4.4 percent, same rate level in February 2024. Notably, the current inflation rate was 5.4 percentage points lower than the figure reported in March 2023. Meanwhile, the city's average inflation rate stands at 4.8 percent (refer to Table A and Figure 1).

1.1 Decreasing Commodities Despite Steady Headline Inflation

Despite no changes in the level of headline inflation, significant commodity groups have seen price decreases. These include (a) Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas, and Other Fuels, which fell to negative 3.7 percent from negative 3.0 percent in the previous month; (b) Restaurants and Accommodation Services, which decreased to 7.7 percent from 9.9 percent; and (c) Personal Care, and Miscellaneous Goods and Services, which declined to 5.7 percent from 5.8 percent in the previous month.

Compared to their annual rates in the previous month, lower year-on-year inflation rates were also observed in the following commodity groups:

a) Information and Communication at 0.3 percent;

b) Clothing and Footwear at 5.4 percent;

c) Health at 4.5 percent; and

d) Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco at 7.1 percent.

In contrast, inflation rates increased in March 2024 for four commodity groups. Specifically, (a) Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages rose to 8.6 percent, from 7.2 percent the previous month; (b) Transport increased to 4.1 percent, from 3.5 percent; (c) Furnishings, Household Equipment, and Routine Household Maintenance went up to 3.6 percent, from 3.3 percent; and (d) Recreation, Sport, and Culture increased to 3.8 percent, from 3.6 percent in the previous month. The inflation rates for the rest of the commodities remained unchanged.

2. Food Inflation

Meanwhile, food inflation increased to 10.6 percent in March 2024 from 9.3 percent in the previous month. The increase was mainly due to a) Fish and Other Seafood at 1.0 percent, from negative 3.8 percent in the previous month. This was followed by b) Vegetables, Tubers, Plantains, Cooking Bananas and Pulses at negative 0.7 percent, from negative 4.5 percent in the previous month; and c) Cereals and cereal products at 26.8 percent, from 26.6 percent in the previous month.

Relative to their annual rates in the previous month, higher year-on-year inflation rates were also observed in the following commodity groups:

a) Meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals, 0.9 percent;

b) Fruits and nuts, 26.3 percent; and

c) Ready-made food and other food products n.e.c., 9.8 percent.

The rest of the food group commodities, on the other hand, have decreasing rate, as follows:

a) Milk, other dairy products and eggs, 0.2 percent;

b) Oils and fats, negative 12.5 percent; and

c) Sugar, confectionery and desserts, negative 4.5 percent.

3. Purchasing Power of Peso

The Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) in Davao City for March 2024 remained unchanged at 0.77 percent, consistent with the value from the previous month, as illustrated in Figure 2. Furthermore, to purchase the same set of goods and services that cost Php 100 in 2018, one would require Php 129.1 in March 2024.

Technical Notes:

Consumer Price Index (CPI) - The CPI is 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.

Inflation Rate (IR) - The inflation rate is the annual rate of change, or the year-on-year change of the CPI expressed in percent. Inflation is interpreted in terms of declining purchasing power of money.

Headline Inflation - measures changes in the cost of living based on movements in the prices of a specified basket of major commodities. It refers to the annual rate of change or the year- on-year change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

Purchasing Power of the Peso (PPP) - The purchasing power of the peso shows how much the peso in the base period is worth in the current period. It is computed as the reciprocal of the CPI for the period under review multiplied by 100.

Approved for Release:
 

(SGD) ROGELIO T. LEBRIA
Chief Statistical Specialist
Davao del Sur Provincial Statistical Office