The headline inflation in Camarines Sur slowed down to 3.4 percent in May 2024 from 3.5 percent recorded in April 2024. This brings the provincial average inflation from January to May 2024 at 3.5 percent. In addition, the inflation rate in May 2024 was lower by 3.8 percentage points than the inflation rate recorded in May 2023 at 7.2 percent.
 

I. Main Contributors to the Headline Inflation

The main contributor in Camarines Sur’s overall inflation during the month of May 2024 was Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages with an inflation rate of 5.7 percent. This equates to 77.9 percent share or 2.65 points contribution to the province inflation. The main contributor to the inflation in this commodity group is Rice with a 30.7 percent inflation rate. This accounts to 89.6 percent share, or 3.05 points.

Transport was the second contributor to the province’s inflation rate with a 20.8 percent share or 0.71 points, while the third primary driver was Clothing and Footwear with an 8.6 percent share or 0.29 points.

II. Main Drivers to the Downtrend of the Headline Inflation

The downtrend in the overall inflation in May 2024 was primarily influenced by the lower year on-year increase in the heavily weighted Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages at 5.7 percent  during the month from 7.8 percent in the previous month. The slower annual growth rate in 
Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco from 5.6 percent in April 2024 to 2.7 percent in May 2024 also contributed to the downtrend of overall inflation.  

In addition, inflation rate in the following commodity groups also slowed down:  
     1. Health, 0.8 percent; 
     2. Recreation, Sports and Culture, 2.5 percent, and 
     3. Personal Care, and Miscellaneous Goods and Services, 2.0 percent.

On the other hand, the following commodity groups registered higher inflation rates during the month: Clothing and Footwear, 8.7 percent; Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels, -4.8 percent; Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance, 2.5 
percent; Transport, 10.8 percent; and Information and Communication, 8.9 percent.

Meanwhile, Education Services, Restaurant and Accommodation Services retained its previous month’s inflation rate, while Financial Services recorded zero percent annual growth. 

Purchasing Power of Peso (PPP) is inversely related to inflation rate.  Thus, as the inflation rate increases, PPP declines.  Figure 4 shows that in Camarines Sur, PPP has been decreasing on the average of 0.04 annually from 2018 to 2023.  The PPP in 2023 was 0.78.  This implies that the PhP1.00 in 2018 as the base year, values only PhP0.78 in 2023.

COMPONENTS OF CPI:

A. Base Period
The reference date or base period is the benchmark or reference date or period at which the index is taken as equal to 100. Starting February 2022, the base period is 2018.

B. Market Basket
A sample of the thousands of varieties of goods purchased for consumption and services availed by the households in the country selected to represent the composite price behaviour of all goods and services purchased by consumers.

C. Weighting System
The weighting pattern uses the expenditures on various consumer items purchased by households as proportion to total expenditure.

D. Formula
The formula used in computing the CPI is the weighted arithmetic mean of price relatives, the Laspeyre’s formula with a fixed base year period (2018) weights.

E. Geographic Coverage
CPI values are computed at the national, regional, and provincial levels, and for selected cities.

INFLATION RATE
The inflation rate is the annual or monthly rate of change of the CPI expressed in percent. Inflation is interpreted in terms of declining purchasing power of money.

HEADLINE INFLATION RATE
The headline inflation rate refers to the rate of change in the CPI, a measure of the average standard “basket” of goods and services consumed by a typical family.

YEAR-ON-YEAR INFLATION RATE
Year-On-Year Inflation Rate is the annual percentage change of CPI. For example, the percentage change of CPI between May 2023 and May 2024.

MONTH-ON-MONTH INFLATION RATE
Month-On-Month Inflation Rate is the monthly percentage change of CPI. For example, the percentage changes of CPI between May 2024 and April 2024.

PURCHASING POWER OF PESO (PPP)
The purchasing power of peso (PPP) shows how much 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.

For example, the PhP 1.00 in 2018 is valued only at PhP 0.78 in 2023.