The Philippines’s inflation in December last year increased to its highest level in two years as a result of devastation of super typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda.

The Philippine National Statistics Office (NSO) said on January 7 that the December 2013 inflation rate stood at 4.1 percent, an increase of 0.8 percent compared to the previous month.

Core inflation (excluding the prices of fuels and food) was up 3.2 percent in the month in comparison with 2.8 percent in November.

Data showed that food prices went up by 4.8 percent in December 2013 from 3.9 percent in the previous month while the prices of housing, power, water, gas and other fuels increased 3.5 percent.

The December inflation brought the full year figure to 3 percent, the low-end of the Central Bank of the Philippines (BSP)’s inflation projection of 3 to 5 percent for 2013.

This was the lowest since 2007 when full year inflation averaged 2.9 percent, said BSP Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr.

The bank also forecast that the country’s average inflation in 2014 will be 4.5 percent, still within its target.-VNA