Guimaras inflation rises to 4.7% in May 2026

Guimaras’s headline inflation rate rose to 4.7 percent in May 2026, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported June 10.

This was higher than the 4.4 percent recorded in April 2026 and the 0.8 percent posted in May 2025, according to the PSA Guimaras Provincial Statistical Office, headed by Provincial Statistics Officer Nelida B. Losare.

The increase brought Guimaras’s year-to-date inflation rate to 2.1 percent for the period January to May 2026.

Nationally, inflation eased to 6.8 percent in May 2026 from 7.2 percent in April 2026, though it remained well above the 1.3 percent logged in May 2025, the PSA said. The national year-to-date rate stood at 4.5 percent.

In Western Visayas, inflation rose to 6.8 percent in May 2026 from 6.6 percent in April 2026 and 1.5 percent in May 2025, bringing the region’s year-to-date rate to 4.4 percent.

The PSA attributed the uptrend in Guimaras’s inflation to faster annual price increases across several commodity groups in May 2026 compared with April.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages rose to 3.0 percent from 1.1 percent. Alcoholic beverages and tobacco increased to 5.5 percent from 4.7 percent. Health climbed to 6.3 percent from 5.8 percent. Recreation, sport and culture posted -0.7 percent, up from -1.1 percent. Personal care and miscellaneous goods and services rose to 4.9 percent from 4.3 percent.

Other commodity groups posted slower annual increases in May compared with April. Clothing and footwear eased to 3.2 percent from 3.3 percent. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels slowed to 1.3 percent from 3.3 percent. Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance dropped to 1.2 percent from 1.6 percent. Transport eased to 27.5 percent from 31.2 percent. Restaurants and accommodation services slowed to 1.5 percent from 3.8 percent.

Three commodity groups retained their April rates in May: information and communication at 1.8 percent, education services at 0.8 percent, and financial services at 0.0 percent.

Transport was the largest contributor to Guimaras’s overall May 2026 inflation rate, accounting for 43.9 percent, or 2.06 percentage points. Food and non-alcoholic beverages contributed 32.3 percent, or 1.52 percentage points. Alcoholic beverages and tobacco added 6.1 percent, or 0.29 percentage point.

Western Visayas posted sustained increases in inflation over the first five months of 2026, climbing from 1.8 percent in December 2025 to 2.3 percent in January, 3.0 percent in February, 3.5 percent in March, 6.6 percent in April, and 6.8 percent in May.

Among Western Visayas provinces, Antique posted the highest inflation rate in May 2026 at 9.3 percent, followed by Aklan at 8.0 percent, Iloilo province at 7.2 percent, Iloilo City at 6.0 percent, and Capiz at 4.3 percent, the lowest in the region. Guimaras recorded the second-lowest rate, at 4.7 percent, which was its highest level for the first five months of 2026 and its highest rate since May 2025.

In April 2026, Aklan and Antique each posted 7.8 percent, followed by Iloilo province at 7.4 percent, Iloilo City at 6.0 percent, Capiz at 4.0 percent, and Guimaras at 4.4 percent.

Inflation across Western Visayas generally declined in the months following May 2025, with several provinces recording deflation. Aklan, Antique, and Guimaras posted negative inflation rates during the middle of 2025, with Antique recording the region’s lowest rate at -3.2 percent in August 2025.

Guimaras posted six consecutive months of negative inflation from July to December 2025, ranging from -0.5 percent to -1.3 percent. Iloilo province and Iloilo City maintained positive inflation throughout 2025.

By December 2025, provincial inflation rates ranged from -1.3 percent in Guimaras to 2.8 percent in Iloilo province, contributing to the region’s overall rate of 1.8 percent that month.

All Western Visayas provinces posted positive inflation rates in May 2026, with Guimaras recovering from the negative inflation it recorded for much of 2025, even as other provinces registered faster price increases, the PSA said.

The Purchasing Power of the Peso (PPP) in Guimaras stood at PHP 0.72 in May 2026, meaning PHP 1.00 in 2018 was equivalent to only PHP 0.72 in May 2026, the PSA said.

The PPP has declined steadily this year, falling from PHP 0.75 in January and February 2026 to PHP 0.74 in March 2026, and to PHP 0.72 in April and May 2026.

From May to December 2025, the province’s PPP ranged from PHP 0.75 to PHP 0.77. It reached its highest level, PHP 0.77, in November 2025, while PHP 0.76 was recorded in April, July, September, October, and December 2025. The PPP stood at PHP 0.75 in May, June, and August 2025.