Wholesale prices continued to ease in November

MANILA, Philippines — The growth in wholesale prices of general goods in the country continued to ease in November from the previous month due to the slower uptick in food and three other commodity groups, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported.

Data released by the PSA showed the annual growth of the General Wholesale Price Index (GWPI) nationwide slowed further to 7.2 percent in November last year from 7.6 percent in October 2022.

This latest reading, however, is faster compared to the 4.2 percent growth in November 2021.

The GWPI tracks the changes in prices in wholesale trade. It is used as a basis for price adjustments in business contracts and projects.

“The lower annual growth in GWPI in the country was primarily brought about by the downtrend in the heavily weighted index of food at 12.3 percent in November 2022,” the PSA said.

In October, the food index posted a 12.9 percent growth.

Other commodity groups with slower annual increments in November were beverages and tobacco at 7.9 percent from 8.4 percent in October; mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials at 25.9 percent from the previous month’s 28.6 percent; and chemicals, including animal and vegetable oils and fats, at 2.5 percent from the 3.4 percent in the prior month.

On the other hand, miscellaneous manufactured articles registered a higher uptick of 3.8 percent in November from 3.3 percent in October.

The crude materials, inedible except fuels index, registered an 18.2 percent decline in November, lower than the 18.6 percent drop in October.

Those that retained their respective October growth rates in November were manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials at 4.2 percent, and machinery and transport equipment at 1.2 percent.

Average growth of the GWPI in the January to November period was at 7.4 percent.

Like the trend seen at the national level, the annual increase of GWPI in Luzon eased to 7.4 percent in November last year from 7.8 percent in October 2022.

“The lower year-on-year increment of GWPI in Luzon was primarily caused by the slower annual increase in the heavily weighted food index at 12.8 percent in November 2022,” the PSA said.

It said lower annual increases were also seen in the following: beverages and tobacco; mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials; chemicals including animal and vegetable oils and fats; and manufactured goods classified chiefly by materials.

As for the Visayas, the GWPI’s year-on-year growth rate slid to 6.5 percent in November from 6.6 percent in October.

This was driven primarily by the lower growth rate of mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials at 19.4 percent in November from 21.9 percent in October.

Moreover, the food index registered a slower uptick in November, while an annual drop was still seen in miscellaneous manufactured articles.

The annual growth of GWPI in Mindanao also slipped to 4.8 percent in November from 4.9 percent in October.

The PSA attributed the lower GWPI growth rate in Mindanao to the slower increase in prices of food as well as beverages and tobacco.