The Philippines' annual inflation rate eased to 6.8% in May from 7.2% in April, according to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority on Friday.
The latest print was lower than the market consensus forecast of 7.5%, according to Investing.com.
Food inflation fell to 5.8% in May from 6.1% the previous month.
Core inflation, which excludes selected food and energy items, increased to 4.1% in May from 3.9% in April, also missing the consensus forecast of 4.2%.
The Philippines' value of production index for manufacturing rose 14.7% annually in April, faster than the 13.1% increase in March, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed on Friday.In April 2025, the index had posted a 2.2% annual decline.Meanwhile, the volume of production index rose 12% in April, faster than a 10.2% rise the month prior, and compared with a 2.4% decline a year earlier.The country's production index measures real output in the manufacturing sector.The value of the net sales index for manufacturing grew 6.8% year on year in April, slower than the 8% annual growth in the preceding month.The volume of net sales index rose 4.2% year on year in April, versus a 5.2% annual rise in the month prior, the data showed.
Japan's average nominal wages, or total cash earnings, rose 3.5% year on year to 312,425 yen in April, the fastest growth since December 2024.The latest print surpassed the consensus forecast of 3.2%, according to Trading Economics, and accelerated from the 3.1% rise in March.Wage growth in Japan has now exceeded 3% for three consecutive months for the first time in over 34 years, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.Special payments, mainly accounting for one-time bonus payments, jumped 7.4% in April to 13,329 yen.Meanwhile, overtime pay rose 4.2% in April, also faster than the revised 3.1% increase in March.
Household spending in Japan rose in April as incomes continued to grow, according to government data released Friday.Average monthly consumption expenditures for two-or-more-person households stood at 328,969 yen, marking a 1.0% increase in nominal terms and a 0.5% drop in real terms compared with the same month a year earlier.In contrast, worker households recorded stronger income growth. Average monthly income rose to 612,163 yen, up 3.8% in nominal terms and 2.3% in real terms from the previous year.