The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Tuesday that inflation rate sped up in March driven by the series of hikes in the retail prices of petroleum products due to the ongoing war in the Middle East.

National Statistician and PSA chief Claire Dennis Mapa said inflation — the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services — accelerated to 4.1% last month from 2.4% in February 2026 and 1.8% in March 2025.

Mapa said the main culprit from the higher inflation print was Transport index which saw an inflation rate of 9.9% and a 54.8% share to the overall uptrend.

“Ang nag-ambag sa mas mataas na antas ng inflation ng Transport nitong Marso 2026 ay ang pagtaas ng presyo mula sa pagbaba ng presyo noong Pebrero 2026 ng mga gasolina at diesel,” he said.