Price cuts seen for one in every 10 school supply items

The Department of Trade and Industry maintains a price guide for school supplies. INQUIRER.net stock images

MANILA, Philippines — A little over a tenth of school supplies tracked by the government posted price drops, with reductions ranging from P1 to P10. The Department of Trade and Industry said this on Friday.

In its 2025 “Gabay sa Pamimili ng School Supplies,” the DTI said 29 stock keeping units (SKUs) saw lower prices. Meanwhile, 101 items maintained their costs from last year.

READ: Prices of most school supplies same as last year’s, says DTI

SKU is used to identify and categorize specific inventories by brand, product type and weight.

Among the items with lower prices were notebooks, pad paper and pencils.

Four notebook SKUs saw reductions between P5 and P10, or 20 percent to 37 percent.

Twenty-four SKUs of pad paper dropped by P1 to P6, or 3 to 26 percent.

One pencil SKU became cheaper by P5, down 25 percent from last year.

“We know how challenging it can be for parents to prepare their children for school, so this price guide is our way of easing that burden making sure students can return to the classroom equipped, confident, and ready to learn without putting too much strain on the family budget,” Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque said in a statement.

The DTI’s price guide for school supplies covers 195 SKUs across 12 product categories. This year, 48 new items were added to the list.