Manila: The headline inflation in the Philippines has decreased to its lowest level in April this year due to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s economic measures aimed at reducing commodity prices, as announced by Malaca±ang on Tuesday. Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro expressed approval of the latest Philippine Statistics Authority's (PSA) report, which indicated that the country's inflation rate eased to 1.4 percent in April 2025, down from 1.8 percent in March, marking the lowest since November 2019.

According to the PSA report, the average inflation rate from January to April 2025 was recorded at 2 percent, aligning with the government's target range of 2 to 4 percent. The decrease in last month's overall inflation was attributed to a slower rise in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, which stood at 0.9 percent compared to 2.2 percent in March 2025. Food inflation nationwide saw a notable drop to 0.7 percent in April 2025 from 2.3 percent in March.

The significant reduction in food inflation was driven by a faster year-on-year decline of the rice index at 10.9 percent, alongside lower inflation rates of vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas, and pulses at 2.3 percent. The PSA also highlighted that another factor contributing to the reduced inflation was the accelerated year-on-year decrease in the transport index, which registered at 2.1 percent, compared to a 1.1 percent annual drop in March 2025.

The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development emphasized that the Marcos administration would persist in closely monitoring the prices of essential commodities and implementing measures to counteract inflationary pressures, despite the observed decline in the inflation rate.