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Inflation quickens to 4.1 percent in March

A driver waits for passengers to get on the bus as commuters take advantage of free bus rides at the NEPA Q-Mart Carousel Bus Station on Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue (EDSA) on December 19, 2022. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

EDSA-COMMUTERS

Arthur Fuentes

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775525370442inflation march.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div>MANILA – Inflation quickened to 4.1 percent in March as fuel and transport costs surged, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.This was faster than the 2.4 percent clip seen in February, which was also quicker than the 2 percent inflation in January. It was also above the 2 to 4 percent target range set by economic managers. It was also higher than the forecast range of the Bangko of between 3.1 and 3.9 percent.PSA Undersecretary and National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said this was also the fastest clip since July 2024, when inflation hit 4.4 percent.Economists had been forecasting inflation to accelerate this year due to base effects, or the low inflation rates seen in 2025. The outbreak of war in the Middle East, however, has caused oil prices to skyrocket in the past few weeks, fueling concerns about even faster inflation.“The uptrend in the overall inflation in March 2026 was primarily influenced by the annual increment of the transport index at 9.9 percent during the month, from an annual decrease of 0.3 percent in February 2026,” the PSA said. Fuel prices have risen sharply since the US and Israel launched a war against Iran at the end of February. Gasoline prices had risen 27.3 percent in March from February, while diesel prices had gone up 59.5 percent. Electricity costs had also gone up by 9.2 percent, the PSA said. The price hikes for gasoline and diesel were the highest since September 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine also sent fuel and food prices skyrocketing. Core inflation, which strips out volatile fuel and food items, meanwhile, also climbed to 3.2 percent.The BSP kept rates steady during an off-cycle monetary policy setting meeting last month amid concerns that spiraling fuel prices and the depreciation of the peso would start impacting other goods and services.

Inflation quickened to 4.1 percent in March amid higher fuel and transport costs, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.

Inflation quickened to 4.1 percent in March amid higher fuel and transport costs, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.

Inflation quickens to 4.1 percent in March as fuel, transport costs surge

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Inflation quickens to 4.1 percent in March as fuel, transport costs surge

Arthur Fuentes,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 07, 2026 09:05 AM PHT

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Updated April 07, 2026 09:30 AM PHT

Read More:

inflation

consumer prices

oil prices

food prices

PSA

economy

Philippine Statistics Authority

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