Consumer Price lndex

The Consumer Price lndex (CPl) of the llocos Region in December 2021 was posted a|129.2. This means that on the average, prices of goods and services in the region increased by 29.2 percent from the base year 2012.

The region's CPI in December 2021 increased by 3.1 percent from December 2020.

By Province

Among the provinces, llocos Norte posted the highest price index in December 2021 at 131.9. Pangasinan followed at 131.8 and llocos Sur at 126.9. Meanwhile, La Union recorded the lowest price index of 120.1 during the period.

Compared from the December 2020 levels, all provinces marked increases in price index. llocos Sur recorded the highest increase of 4.88 percent followed by llocos Norte with 3.05 percent, Pangasinan with 2.97 percent and La Union with 2.13 percent.

By Commodity Group

The top three commodity groups that recorded high price indices in December 2021 were: alcoholic beverages and tobacco (244.5); food and non-alcoholic beverages (138.5); and furnishings, household equipment and routine maintenance of the house (129.7). On the other hand, the bottom three commodity groups with low price indices were: communication (101.9); education (111.3); and recreation and culture (112.7).

lnflation Rate

As shown in Figure 3, the inflation rate in the llocos Region settled at 3.1 percent in December 2021 .The region's annual rate in the previous month was 3.8 percent, while 3.6 percent in December 2020.

The highest inflation rate was recorded in the months of August and September 2021 at 5.0 percent. Meanwhile, the lowest inflation rate was noted during the period at 3.1 percent.

The inflation rate in December 2021 declined by 0.7 percentage point from November 2021 and 0.5 percentage point from December 2020.

By Province

Among the provinces, llocos Sur posted the highest inflation rate at 4.9 percent in December 2021, followed by llocos Norte and Pangasinan, both at 3.0 percent. lnflation rate in La Union was pegged at 2.1 percent. Compared to their respective levels in December 2020, all provinces, except llocos Sur, recorded lower inflation rates. llocos Norte recorded the highest decrease of 1.5 percentage points. Meanwhile, La Union and Pangasinan have decreased by 0.9 and 0.8 percentage point, respectively. On the other hand, llocos Sur has increased by 1.9 percentage points.

By Commodity Group

Among the commodity groups in the region, transport recorded the highest inflation rate with 9.1. lt was followed by the alcoholic beverages and tobacco with 6.8, and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels with 5.1. Meanwhile, education, and communication have the lowest inflation rates of 0.0 and 0.2, respectively.

Purchasing Power of Peso

The Purchasing Power of the Peso (PPP) in the llocos Region in December 2021 was posted at Php 0.77. This means that the purchasing capability of Php1.00 in 2012 decreased by 23 centavos.

Among the provinces, La Union posted the highest PPP in December 2021 with Php0.83. lt was followed by llocos Sur with Php 0.79 PPP. Meanwhile, the least were recorded in llocos Norte and Pangasinan, both at Php 0.76.

It can be gleaned in Figure 5 that PPPs in all the provinces in December 2021were lower than their respective levels in December 2020. The PPPs in llocos Norte, La Union and Pangasinan went down by Php 0.02, while llocos Sur decreased by Php 0.04.

SGD. ATTY. SHEILA O. DE GUZMAN

Regional Director, RSSO I