The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) welcomed the continued decline in headline inflation as a sign of meaningful progress toward easing price pressures and ensuring a more stable cost of living for Filipinos.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the country’s headline inflation rate dropped to 1.3 percent in May 2025, down from 1.4 percent in April. This marks the lowest inflation rate recorded since November 2019, when it stood at 1.2 percent. With this, the year-to-date average inflation now stands at 1.9 percent, well within the government’s target range.
“We are encouraged by this development. It reflects the success of our sustained efforts to protect the purchasing power of Filipinos and ensure a more affordable cost of living,” said DEPDev Office-in-Charge and Undersecretary for Policy and Planning Rosemarie G. Edillon.
The most notable improvement was seen among the bottom 30 percent of income households, who experienced zero percent inflation in May, down sharply from 5.3 percent in the same month last year. Within this group, food inflation also fell significantly to 2.0 percent, compared to 8.2 percent in May 2024.
At the national level, food inflation held steady at 0.7 percent in May, unchanged from April and a substantial drop from 6.1 percent in the same month last year.
To sustain the downward momentum, the Marcos Administration reaffirmed its commitment to targeted and responsive policy measures to mitigate inflationary pressures.
“We remain committed to executing the necessary measures to keep prices low and stable. With this, we are optimistic about the government meeting its headline inflation target of 2 to 4 percent for the year,” Edillon added.
Edillon is currently serving as Officer-in-Charge of DEPDev while Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan is on official travel in Paris, France, attending the handover ceremony of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Southeast Asia Regional Programme. The Philippines has officially assumed the co-chairship of the Programme alongside Canada, underscoring a shared commitment to sustainable and inclusive development across Southeast Asia.
