MANILA (UPDATE) - Inflation further accelerated in May as oil and other commodity prices remained elevated, government data released Tuesday showed.

The consumer price index rose 5.4 percent for the month, faster than the 4.9 percent in April, the Philippine Statistics Authority said.

The figure is within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' projected range of of 5 to 5.8 percent inflation for the month, much higher than the government target range of 2 to 4 percent.

• Inflation likely quickened to 5 to 5.8 percent in May: BSP

Food and non-alcoholic beverages and transport are among the biggest contributors to the month's inflation, National Statistician Dennis Mapa said in a press briefing.

"The inflation outturn is consistent with the BSP’s assessment of continued uptick in inflation as supply-side pressures persist. The inflation path continues to be driven primarily by supply-side factors amid volatile global commodity prices," BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said.

"The latest assessment also indicates that domestic economic activity has gained stronger traction with the easing of mobility restrictions," he added.

Inflation is likely to remain elevated in the coming months as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which has an impact on global crude oil prices, persists, analysts have said.

For the whole of 2022, inflation is likely to average 4.6 percent before falling within the target range by 2023, the BSP said.

The BSP earlier hiked the benchmark interest rate to 2.25 percent from 2 percent for the first time in over 3 years to temper inflation. Another monetary meeting is set on June 23.

• BSP hikes interest rate to 2.25 percent as inflation accelerates

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