GENERAL RETAIL PRICE INDEX IN THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
(1978=100)
March 2008

• Month-on-Month

            The month-on-month growth rate of the General Retail Price Index (GRPI) in the National Capital Region (NCR) picked up to 1.4 percent in March from -0.1 percent in February. This was attributed mainly to the increments in the prices of the heavily weighted food index at 1.4 percent in March from -0.5 percent in February. In addition, the monthly price increases in mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials were higher at 2.0 percent in March from -1.3 percent in February; chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats, 0.4 percent from 0.3 percent; manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials, 1.9 percent from 0.6 percent; and miscellaneous manufactured articles, 0.6 percent from 0.5 percent. Prices of machinery and transport equipment remained stable as the group's index recorded a zero growth while the rest of the commodity groups posted slower positive growth rates.

            Prices of foodstuffs such as chicken, eggs, pork, beef, dairy products, fish, rice, bakery products, sugar, cooking oil, cocoa and chocolate products were on the uptrend. Price hikes were also noted in gasoline, kerosene and selected construction materials.
  
  

• Year-on-Year

            The annual growth rate of the GRPI in NCR advanced to 7.3 percent in March from 5.6 percent in February. All the commodity groups registered higher annual price gains except in machinery and transport equipment index whose annual growth rate slowed down to 1.3 percent from 1.4 percent. The annual growth rate for food index moved up to 7.2 percent in March from 5.1 percent in February; beverages and tobacco, 5.1 percent from 4.2 percent; crude materials, inedible except fuels, 6.8 percent from 6.5 percent; mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials, 23.0 percent from 21.1 percent; chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats, 1.9 percent from 1.8 percent; manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials, 3.6 percent from 2.0 percent; and miscellaneous manufactured articles, 5.7 percent from 5.4 percent.

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  Source:    National Statistics Office
                    Manila, Philippines
  
  Page last revised:   August 6, 2008