June 05, 2025 – The continued decline in the country’s headline inflation shows progress toward easing price pressures and achieving a more stable cost of living for Filipinos, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) said Thursday (June 5).

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the country’s headline inflation rate further slowed to 1.3 percent in May 2025, down from 1.4 percent in April. This marks the lowest inflation rate since November 2019, when it stood at 1.2 percent. As a result, the year-to-date average inflation now stands at 1.9 percent.

“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.

Most notably, the bottom 30 percent income households experienced zero percent inflation in May 2025. This reflects a sharp decline from 5.3 percent in the same month last year. For this group, food inflation also declined significantly to 2.0 percent, down from 8.2 percent in May 2024.

Meanwhile, food inflation at the national level remained steady at 0.7 percent in May, unchanged from April, and significantly lower than the 6.1 percent recorded in May 2024.

By region, the National Capital Region posted a slower inflation rate of 1.7 percent in May, down from 2.4 percent the previous month. Other regions maintained a low average inflation rate of 1.2 percent, with nine regions—including Region XII (SOCCSKARGEN), Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), and Region X (Northern Mindanao)—recording lower inflation rates than the previous month.

To sustain this downward trend, the Marcos Administration reaffirmed its commitment to implementing targeted policies aimed at mitigating inflationary pressures and safeguarding the purchasing power of Filipino families.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) are strengthening its collaboration to ensure the availability of safe and effective animal vaccines amid ongoing African Swine Fever (ASF) and Avian Influenza outbreaks. The Bureau of Animal Industry is assessing the controlled ASF vaccination campaign. The DA and the Food and Drug Administration remain optimistic that a commercial rollout of the ASF vaccine could be achieved before the end of the year.

Meanwhile, the DA also extended the deadline for the issuance of fish import permits to the end of June 2025 to provide more time for importers to comply with the revised guidelines. The previous guidelines were amended to enhance the timeframe and product coverage, ensuring the availability of supplies in the source countries. With this, the DA expects the adjustment to encourage full utilization of the approved import volume.

In addition, the DA launched the Benteng Bigas Meron Na program on May 15, 2025, to improve access to affordable rice by offering PHP 20/kg milled rice from the National Food Authority (NFA) to the members of vulnerable groups such as the 4Ps beneficiaries, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and single parents. To date, the PHP 20/kg rice is available in KADIWA Centers in Metro Manila, Cebu, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Mindoro, and Rizal. Phases 2 and 3 will be implemented in July and September, covering more areas across Visayas and Mindanao.

“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 the OIC of DEPDev while Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan is on official travel to attend the handover ceremony of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Southeast Asia Regional Programme during the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris, France. The Philippines officially assumes the co-chairship of the Programme with Canada—marking not just an institutional milestone, but a shared commitment to advancing sustainable and inclusive development across Southeast Asia.

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