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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Inflation holds steady within target range despite uptick, says Recto

Inflation holds steady within target range despite uptick, says Recto

Published Mar 5, 2024 06:28 am

Despite the uptick in February, the Department of Finance (DOF) said that the rise in consumer prices remained well within the government's target range.

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said the 3.4 percent inflation rate last month fell within the government's desired range of 2.0 percent to 4.0 percent and closely aligned with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) forecast of 2.8 percent to 3.6 percent for February.

The latest recent inflation rate surged from 2.8 percent recorded in January, putting an end to four consecutive months of slowing consumer prices.

“The government has a comprehensive plan in place––the Reduce Emerging Inflation Now or REIN––to keep the prices of goods and services stable and affordable,” Recto said in a statement on Tuesday, March 5.

“The deliberate implementation of REIN will help us keep the inflation rate within manageable levels, especially with the looming threat of El Niño,” he added.

Recto said the government is "proactively preparing" to mitigate the effects of El Niño on inflation, which is forecasted to peak this month and persist until May.

“As I have said before, reducing inflation and protecting the purchasing power of Filipinos is a top priority of this administration,” Recto said.

“The government and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas [BSP] are working in sync to ensure that both non-monetary and monetary measures prioritize growth and price stability,” the finance chief added.

Inflation is the rate at which the overall prices of goods and services have increased over time.

The main contributors to February 2024 inflation were food and non-alcoholic beverages (1.7 percentage points (ppt) of the 3.4 percent overall inflation), restaurants and accommodation services(0.5 ppt), and housing rentals (0.4 ppt).

Food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation slightly rose to 4.6 percent in February from 3.5 percent in the previous month mainly due to rice (2.1 ppts contribution) as well as flour, bread, and other bakery products (0.2 ppt). Meanwhile, prices of vegetables (-0.3 ppt) decelerated in February.

The increase in rice inflation in February at 23.7% year-on-year (YoY) is mainly due to higher rice prices domestically and internationally.

Factors such as El Niño have impacted major rice-exporting countries like Thailand and importers alike have created supply-demand imbalances. Additionally, export curbs in India, the largest rice exporter, contributed to a surge in international rice prices.

Meanwhile, non-food inflation registered a slight uptick at 2.4 percent in February 2024, from 2.0 percent in the previous month. The main contributors were restaurants and accommodation services (0.5 ppt), housing rentals (0.4 ppt), and personal care (0.2 ppt).

Nevertheless, these were offset by the continued deceleration of electricity, gas, and other fuels (4.3 percent from 4.7 percent in January 2024) as well as the operation of personal transport equipment (-1.5 percent from 6.5 percent).

Related Tags

Consumer prices Department of Finance (DOF) ralph recto inflation rate Finance Secretary
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