Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 7) — Rice prices across the country declined last month but remained much higher than a year ago, according to National Statistician Dennis Mapa of the Philippine Statistics Authority.
After reporting that the October inflation print was slower at 4.9%, Mapa also said that rice inflation — which holds a major weight in the food basket — went down to 13.2% from 17.9% in September.The official said there was a “substantial drop” in regular milled and well-milled rice prices when compared to September’s data.The average price for regular milled rice nationwide stood at ₱45.40 per kilo, down from September’s ₱47.60.The per-kilo prices of well-milled rice also fell to ₱51 against the ₱52.70 a month ago.Special rice, meanwhile, only saw a dip to ₱61 from ₱61.10.But compared to a year ago, October’s prices were still costlier as the three items had per-kilo prices of ₱39.70 for regular milled rice, ₱44 for well-milled rice, and ₱53.30 for special rice.“Last year, mas mababa ang presyo ng bigas sa tatlong commodity items na tina-track namin,” Mapa said.[Translation: Last year, the three commodity items that we’re tracking were cheaper.]
