In a news conference, PSA head Dennis Mapa said the higher year-on-year increase in heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages at 9.7 percent from 8.1 percent in August contributed to the uptrend in the overall inflation in September 2023.
Mapa said the food inflation at the national level rose to 10 percent in September from 8.2 percent in the previous month, which was mainly brought about by the higher inflation for rice with a double-digit inflation rate of 17.9 percent during the month from 8.7 percent in August. Transport, with an inflation rate of 1.2 percent from 0.2 percent in August, also contributed to the elevated headline inflation in September.
The September inflation rate brought the national average inflation from January to September 2023 to 6.6 percent. In September 2022, the inflation rate was higher at 6.9 percent.
To address the rising rice price and ensure enough supply through timely and adequate importation, National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government is looking at extending the lower the Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rates on rice until December 2024, but subject to review in July 2024.
Should there be a need for a more robust response to stabilize local prices, Balisacan said the government might also revisit the proposal to temporarily lower tariffs on rice, regardless of origin, if the global price of rice continues to rise due to the impacts of El Nino and rice export bans among rice-exporting countries.
"As we implement short-term measures to ease the negative effects of inflation, it is imperative that we also address our long-term food supply issues by providing support for our local farmers to boost their productivity and resilience," Balisacan added.
The Manila-based Asian Development Bank forecasts inflation in the Philippines to average 6.2 percent in 2023 before easing to 4 percent in 2024.
Latest comments