Inflation compounds. The PH peso has lost roughly 85% of its 1980 buying power by 2026.
What ₱100 bought in 1980 — a small grocery basket — now costs about ₱1,800–₱2,200. Average annual inflation across this period: ~6.8%, with spikes during the 1984 debt crisis, 2008 food shock, and 2022 fuel-driven surge.
The Bangko Sentral now targets 2–4% inflation. Anything held in a passbook savings account (~0.25%/yr) is bleeding ~3–4% in real terms every year.