BAGUIO CITY (PIA) – – Inflation rate in the Cordillera Region in January 2023 hit 7.9 percent, slightly higher than the 7.7 percent and the 7.6 percent inflation rate recorded in December and November 2022, respectively.
This was reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority–Cordillera (PSA–CAR) Statistical Specialist II Cherry Dionisio during the virtual Consumer Price Index data dissemination on Tuesday (February 28).
Dionisio shared that the inflation in CAR continued to rise primarily due to higher prices of food items as the main sources in the acceleration of the January 2023 Inflation is from the commodity group of food and non–alcoholic beverages with 11.4 percent, followed only by clothing and footwear at 4.4 percent.
Per geographical area, the biggest contributor to the increased Cordillera inflation are Baguio City and Kalinga with 43.3 % and 40.3% share, respectively, she added.
Inflation rate is the rate of change of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), an indicator of the change in the average retail prices of a fixed basket of goods and service commonly purchased by households relative to a base year.
For Cordillera, the CPI increased from 119.6 in December 2022 to 120.5 this January 2023.
Meantime, Department of Agriculture–Cordillera Program Monitoring and Evaluation Division Chief Susan Balanza, in the dissemination forum, affirmed the concern on the increase in prices of food products due to lesser production and higher demand of the population.
In the Cordillera, the transportation and logistics cost also contributed to the increase in food prices due to the topography and road network in the region, Balanza added.
She shared that ensuring food security remains to be their primary goal and in doing so, the department is bringing in interventions to restore the level of production to pre–pandemic levels.
The DA is also working in developing the resiliency of the farmers in the region as disasters and calamities are also big factors that affect the production and cost of agriculture products in the region.**JDP/CCD-PIA CAR
