Table 1. Year-on-Year Inflation Rate for All Income Households, All Items

(2018=100) in percent

Negros Occidental’s Inflation Rate for all income household remains at its previous month’s rate at 2.3 percent and decline against March 2023 with 10.8 percent (Please see Figure 1). Some commodities noted to have a positive annual growth rate but others exhibited a decline in growth rate; Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages, Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco,  Clothing and Footwear, Health, Transport, and Information & Communication noted at positive growth rate in March 2024. While, Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels, Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance, and Restaurants and Accommodation Services exhibits a negative growth rate.

In Bacolod City, Inflation Rate for All Income Households  exhibited a slight increase  to 3.3 percent from 3.1 percent in February 2024 and decrease against March 2023 with 8.7 percent. (See Figure 2.).

The rise up was attributed by a slight increase in the indices of some commodities like; Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages at 5.4 percent from 3.8 percent in February 2024,  Clothing & Footwear at 9.8 percent from 9.3 percent, Transport at 1.3 percent  from 0.8 percent, and Restaurants & Accommodation Services at 3.0 percent from 2.1 percent.

Relative to their annual rates in the previous month, lower inflation rates were observed in the indices of the following commodities: 

1. Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco,

2. Housing/Water/Electricity/Gas and Other Fuels,

3. Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance

4. Personal Care and Miscellaneous Good & Services.

The indices of the rest of the commodities retained their previous months annual growth rates.

Table 2. Year-on-Year Inflation Rates of the CPI for All Income Households in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City, January 2021 to March 2024.