MANILA (UPDATE 2) — Inflation further slowed in April to 1.4 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.

The April clip was slower than the 1.8 percent rate in March, and meant that the average inflation for the first four months of the year was 2.0 percent. It was also within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' forecast range of 1.3 to 2.1 percent. 

PSA Undersecretary and National Statistician Dennis Mapa said the slower inflation last month was mainly due to slower increases in the prices of food, as well as the decreases in fuel prices.

"Food inflation at the national level further eased to 0.7 percent in April 2025 from 2.3 percent in the previous month. In April 2024, food inflation was higher at 6.3 percent," the PSA said.

He noted that the average price of regular milled rice went down P44.45 per kilo in April from P46.09 in March. The average price of well-milled rice also went down to P50.54 April from P52.25 the previous month, he said.

Slower inflation rates were also seen for vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses at 2.3 percent during the month from 6.9 percent in March 2025, and fish and other seafood at 4.3 percent in April 2025 from 5.5 percent in the previous month.

 He also noted the faster year-on-year decrease in the transport index at 2.1 percent during the month from a 1.1 percent annual drop in March 2025.

 "Ang mga panunahing nag-ambag sa pagbaba ng inflation ng transport ay ang mas mabilis na pagbaba sa pagbaba sa presyo ng gasolina na may negative 12.4 percent inflation at diesel na may negative 8.3 percent inflation," Mapa said.

 The official noted, however, that housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels kept inflation up this month. Inflation for the said commodity group was at 2.9 percent.

Electricity inflation, in particular, went up to 5.4 percent, from -0.7 percent in March, while water inflation went up to 6.3 percent from 5.9 percent the month prior. Mapa said the PSA will be tracking, among others, how electricity rates will be moving in May.

“Well of course it follows the supply and the demand ano, dahil tumataas talaga pag summer so siguro nagkakaroon tayo ng pag-angat doon sa presyo dahil doon sa mga supply natin,” he said.

Core inflation, which strips out food and energy items that prone to wild swings in prices, was steady at 2.2 percent in April--the same rate it was in March. The PSA noted that in April 2024, core inflation rate was faster at 3.2 percent.

Inflation however was faster at 2.4 percent in the National Capital Region compared to the rest of the country. The PSA said this was due to faster increases in the costs of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels at 5.1 percent during the month from 2.2 percent in March 2025. 

Mapa said the April print is the lowest seen since the 1.2 inflation rate in November 2019.

The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) said the low inflation rate shows that government’s policy interventions to keep commodity prices down are working.

“We will continue to implement strategies to vigilantly monitor price shocks and proactively temper inflationary pressures,” said DEPDev Undersecretary for Planning and Policy Group, Rosemarie G. Edillon. 

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), for its part, said risks to inflation remain broadly balanced from 2025 to 2027. 

“Upside pressures come from possible increases in transport charges, meat prices, and utility rates. Meanwhile, downside risks are linked to the continuing effects of lower tariffs on rice imports and the expected impact of weaker global demand,” the BSP said. 

As inflation eased over the past few months, BSP Governor Eli Romolona earlier said that more rate cuts in increments of 25 bps may be expected this year, despite the trade war initiated by US President Donald Trump.

Remolona has said that the Philippines was different from the rest of the world in terms of the impact of tariffs, as it relies relatively less on trade than its neighbors. The Philippines also has a lower reciprocal tariff rate, he added.