Manila, March 10 -- The inflation rate in Guimaras was at 0.4 percent in February from -0.6 percent in January, according to data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Tuesday.

This is the first time that the province recorded a positive inflation rate after seven months of posting a negative rate.

"Despite the slight acceleration, inflation in Guimaras remained significantly lower compared with the national inflation rate of 2.4 percent and the Western Visayas regional rate of 3.0 percent during the same period," Guimaras Provincial Statistics Officer Nelida Losare said in a media conference.

She said the upward movement was primarily influenced by faster annual price increases in selected commodity groups, particul...