SECOND HIGHEST IN PH: Fastest-growing region now battles near-double-digit inflation

ILOILO CITY — Western Visayas posted the country’s second-highest inflation rate in October as headline inflation climbed to 9.7%, its highest level this year, clouding the outlook for a region that led the country in economic growth in 2025.

The Philippine Statistics Authority Western Visayas (PSA-6) reported that regional inflation accelerated from 9.2% in September, tying the Davao Region for the second-highest rate nationwide.

The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao posted the highest inflation rate at 9.9%.

The regional rate outpaced the national figure of 7.8%, itself up from 7.2% in September and the fastest since February 2023.

PSA-6 Director Nelida Amolar said the region’s year-to-date inflation from January to October reached 6.4%.

The October rate was also far higher than the 0.7% recorded in the same month last year.

The region’s inflation has maintained an upward trend since January, when it stood at 2.3%.

The October acceleration was driven primarily by faster increases in transportation costs, with the commodity group’s annual inflation rising to 26% from 16.9% in September.

That regional figure also topped the national transport index of 20.1%.

Food and nonalcoholic beverages remained a major contributor, accounting for 35.6% of the region’s headline inflation, equivalent to 3.45 percentage points.

The commodity group recorded an inflation rate of 8% during the month.

Amolar said rice and other cereal products, along with fish and seafood, continued to influence food prices.

While rice inflation declined slightly from the previous month, Amolar noted that increases in other readily available food products, including canned goods and noodles, continued to put pressure on household spending.

With the holiday season approaching, Amolar said consumers could feel the impact of rising prices of grocery items.

“We are hoping that the increase in grocery item prices can be mitigated or controlled. But, of course, with inflation rising, there will really be an impact on commodity prices, particularly canned goods,” she said in a press briefing on Tuesday, Nov. 10.

Amolar also stressed that food still contributed the most to inflation because agricultural production continued to decline in the third quarter.

She said both rice production and yield were affected, contributing to the decline in agricultural output.

She expressed hope that late harvesting and planting activities would help improve output in the fourth quarter, noting that agricultural production increased in the last quarter of 2025.

Amolar encouraged households to tighten their budgets and explore additional income-generating activities to cope with rising prices.

She suggested that store owners consider entrepreneurial activities or sidelines to supplement their primary income, such as offering mobile phone loading services alongside operating a grocery store.

She also encouraged households to engage in food production, including planting vegetables and raising chickens, to reduce their dependence on purchased food.

Growth outlook

Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DepDev) Undersecretary Carlos Abad Santos said Western Visayas is expected to sustain positive economic growth in 2026, although its performance may fall short of the 6.4% expansion recorded in 2025.

Western Visayas posted the highest economic growth among the country’s 18 regions in 2025, exceeding the national average of 4.4%.

That expansion lifted the regional economy to PHP 683.44 billion, the eighth largest in the country.

“In 2024 and 2025, you performed very well, meeting the growth target of 6% to 7%. However, in 2026, the situation is different. Inflation was only 1.5% in 2025, but it rose to 9.2% in September and 9.7% in October,” Abad Santos said.

He said the economic landscape had changed considerably, but stressed the need to prevent the region’s growth from slowing significantly.

“Even now, what is important is to ensure that we do not slide back in terms of our growth in Western Visayas. We are still projecting a positive growth rate, but probably not as much as what we experienced in 2025,” he added.

Abad Santos identified sustaining agricultural production and expanding value-adding activities as key priorities for the region.

He said agriculture accounts for a larger share of the Western Visayas economy than the national average, making the sector’s continued productivity crucial to sustaining regional growth.

However, he pointed out that the region still needs to strengthen its manufacturing and processing industries to generate greater value from locally produced raw materials.

“Most of your raw materials are shipped out of the region in raw material form. So what you need to do is step up value addition through manufacturing and processing,” he said.

He also emphasized the need to ensure adequate, reliable, and affordable electricity to support manufacturing and other industries.

Abad Santos said strengthening value-adding industries and reducing electricity costs would be crucial to the region’s economic prospects in 2026 and 2027.