Aklan inflation climbs to 4.9% in March

KALIBO, Aklan — Aklan’s inflation rate accelerated to 4.9% in March 2026 from 3.4% in February 2026 and 0.4% in March 2025, based on the latest price survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority.

The province posted the highest headline inflation rate in Western Visayas in March, exceeding the regional rate of 3.5%.

National inflation also rose to 4.1% in March from 2.4% in February, while inflation in areas outside the National Capital Region climbed to 4.2%, adding broader context to the price pressures seen in Aklan.

The uptrend in Aklan was driven mainly by faster annual increases in food and non-alcoholic beverages, which rose to 5.6% in March from 3.2% in February and accounted for 54.1% of the overall increase.

Rice was a key contributor in that category, posting 1.4% inflation after a 6.8% annual decline in the previous month.

Transport also recorded a sharp increase, with inflation rising to 10.8% from 1.8% in February and accounting for 45.9% of the overall uptrend.

The transport increase was driven mainly by gasoline, which climbed to 17.9% from a 13.2% annual decline, and diesel, which surged to 47.7% from a 3.8% annual decline.

Three commodity groups posted slower annual increases in March: alcoholic beverages and tobacco, at 2.1% from 4.7%; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, at 0.4% from 1.7%; and personal care and miscellaneous goods and services, at 2.6% from 3.0%.

The indices of the remaining commodity groups were unchanged from their February annual rates.

Food inflation in Aklan rose to 5.4% in March from 2.9% in February, reversing the 0.8% annual decline recorded in March 2025.

Among food groups, faster annual increases were recorded in cereals and cereal products, at 1.7% from a 4.5% annual decline; oils and fats, at 0.6% from 0.3%; fruits and nuts, at 17.3% from 13.1%; and vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas, and pulses, at 34.8% from 23.4%.

Lower annual increases, meanwhile, were observed in fish and other seafood, at 10.2% from 10.8%, and in ready-made food and other food products not elsewhere classified, at 7.3% from 7.8%.

Faster annual declines were recorded in meat and other parts of slaughtered land animals, which fell 5.2% from a 4.9% decline in February; milk, other dairy products, and eggs, which slipped 0.5% from a 0.1% decline; and sugar, confectionery, and desserts, which posted a 0.3% decline after a 0.6% increase in the previous month.

Inflation measures the rate at which prices of goods and services increase over time, reducing the purchasing power of the peso relative to the 2018 base year used in the consumer price index.