Retail prices for imported and locally created rice in the Philippines has seen a rise further by 4 per cent to 14 per cent in August, government information revealed on Friday, as global and domestic farmgate prices soared, leading to extreme pressure on food inflation. The sudden and intense inflation in prices of the nation’s staple food led to local rice inflation to 4.2 per cent in July, the quickest pace since 2019.
It is signalling developing pressure on the nation, a major importer of the grain, to quickly increase its stockpile. Adding to supply risks, the Philippines is coming back to itself for the affect on harvests of scorching weather led by the El Nino phenomenon, which the government hopes will not be severe. The Department of Agriculture said it is willing to get “better terms” for an additional 300,000 to 500,000 tonnes of rice imports this year from private traders, as it wants to lower prices.
Vietnamese rice exporters are now proposing lesser prices to Philippine traders. The Department of Agriculture will also collaboratively work with the government of India to permit Manila to import rice on humanitarian foundations, said Agriculture Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban. “The steep rise is a huge upside danger, recognizing how heavily weighted rice is in the CPI (consumer price index) basket,” HSBC economist Aris Dacanay said.