Inflation slows in May but stays above target

INFLATION surprisingly slowed to 6.8 percent in May, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Friday, as fuel price rollbacks led to reduced price pressures. Consumer price growth slowed from 7.2 percent in April but remained above the 2.0- to 4.0-percent target. It was also lower than the 7.8-percent median in a Manila Times poll of economists and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) 7.1- to 7.9-percent estimate. The easing was driven by slower annual increases in the costs