Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said President Marcos’ economic strategy has helped protect Filipino families—especially the poorest—from rising prices, citing sharply lower inflation and steady growth in 2025.

Recto said inflation fell to 1.6 percent from January to November 2025, down from 3.4 percent in 2024, continuing a steady decline since President Marcos assumed office.

He said the slowdown reflects “decisive and coordinated actions” by the administration to stabilize prices, secure food supply, and protect household purchasing power, particularly for rice, which takes up the largest share of spending among low-income families.

“To put this in perspective, a six-percent inflation rate means that your P100 can buy only about P94 worth of goods and services,” Recto explained.

“But with inflation down to just 1.6 percent in 2025, that same P 100 can now buy about P98.4 worth of goods and services,” he added.

The Palace official said this directly benefits ordinary households, especially those most vulnerable to price increases.

“Kaya napakahalaga nito para sa bawat pamilyang Pilipino, lalo na ang mga mahihirap (That is why this is very important for every Filipino family, especially the poor),” he said.

“Kapag mababa ang inflation, napapanatili natin na abot-kaya ang mga pangunahing bilihin, lalo na ang pagkain (When inflation is low, we keep basic goods affordable, especially food),” he added.

According to Recto, rice prices continue to improve following President Marcos’ directive to bring rice prices down to as low as P20 per kilo, roughly half of the average prices in 2022.

As a result, inflation for the bottom 30 percent of income households dropped to minus 0.2 percent in November 2025, marking the sixth straight month of contraction and signaling that price stabilization efforts are reaching the poorest Filipinos.

Recto said the low and stable inflation environment has also strengthened investor confidence, noting that S&P Global Ratings recently reaffirmed the Philippines’ BBB+ investment-grade rating with a positive outlook.

He said the rating reflects confidence in the country’s macroeconomic management and the administration’s economic leadership.

Lower prices, combined with a strong labor market, are expected to boost domestic consumption and support economic growth, he added.

With inflation easing, Recto said the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas now has more room to adjust interest rates, potentially providing further support to household spending and overall economic activity.

Multilateral institutions remain optimistic about the country’s outlook, with the Asian Development Bank projecting a five-percent growth for 2025, while the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast a 5.1-percent expansion.

Recto noted that this outperforms the IMF’s projected average growth of advanced economies this year, including the United States, Japan, and the euro area.

The Philippines’ projected growth is also higher than the 4.2-percent average for ASEAN-5 economies, ranking second only to Vietnam.

By 2026, the IMF projects the Philippines to be the fastest-growing economy in ASEAN, tied with Vietnam at 5.6 percent growth.