RETAIL PRICE growth of general goods in the National Capital Region (NCR) were at their lowest level in three months in January, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said in a report.
Citing preliminary data, the PSA said price growth in Metro Manila as measured by the general retail price index (GRPI) slowed 1.4% year on year in January from the 1.5% posted in December.
This was also significantly slower than the year-earlier rate of 2.5%.
The January indicator was the weakest reading since October’s 1.3%. It was level with the pace set in November.
“The primary contributor to the deceleration of the annual growth rate of GRPI in NCR was the slower annual increase recorded in the index of manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials at 1.1% during the month from 1.5% in December 2024,” the PSA said.
The manufactured-goods sub-index accounted for 16% of GRPI growth.
Growth in the heavily-weighted price sub-index for food cooled to 1.8%, from 1.9%.
Slower price growth was also seen in beverages and tobacco (3.8% from 3.9%), crude materials, inedible except fuels (0.6% from 0.7%), chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats (2.2% from 2.5%), and miscellaneous manufactured articles (1.1% from 1.4%).
The growth in the sub-index for mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials was 0.9%, a reversal of December’s 0.3% drop.
The sub-index for machinery and transport equipment was unchanged at 0.2% growth.
According to the PSA, the GRPI is used as a deflator in the National Accounts, particularly in the retail trade sector, and serves as a basis for forecasting. — Pierce Oel A. Montalvo