MANILA, June 6 (Reuters) - Philippines' annual inflation eased to its slowest pace in four months in May, reflecting slower price increases for eight commodity groups including food and non-alcoholic beverages, official date from the statistics agency showed on Tuesday.
The annual rate of consumer price inflation was 3.1 percent in May, below economists' forecast for an increase to 3.3 percent, supporting market expectations the central bank would leave interest rates unchanged at its June 22 meeting. Last month's inflation print was within the central bank's 2.9-3.7 percent projection, and the 2-4 percent target for the year.
Core inflation, which strips out volatile food and fuel items, was 2.9 percent in May, easing slightly from 3.0 percent in April.
Prices rose 0.1 percent in May from April.INFLATION MayAprMarFebJanDecNov(in pct)Headline3.13.43.43.32.72.62.5(yr/yr) Headline0.10.20.20.30.30.30.6(mth/mth) Core (yr/yr)2.93.02.92.72.52.52.4
2 0 1 7
ITEMSMayApr Mar Weight
(y/y in pct) Food and Non-Alcoholic 3.84.2 4.039.98BeveragesAlcoholic Beverages and6.16.3 6.4 1.99TobaccoClothing and Footwear2.22.7 2.9 2.96Housing, Water, Electricity, 3.63.6 4.022.46Gas, and Other Fuels Furnishing, Household2.32.4 2.5 3.22Equipment and RoutineMaintenance of the House Health 2.42.5 2.8 2.99Transport2.73.2 2.6 7.81Communication0.20.3 0.2 2.26Recreation and Culture 1.41.5 1.8 1.93Education1.81.8 1.8 3.37Restaurant and Miscellaneous 1.61.5 1.712.03Goods and Services (Reporting by Enrico dela Cruz and Karen Lema; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
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