The Department of Agriculture (DA) welcomed the news that inflation in March decelerated to 1.8 percent, its slowest pace since the economy faced mobility challenges and weaker consumption due to lockdowns imposed to manage the COVID-19 pandemic.

Inflation was at 1.6 percent in May 2020.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) attributed the slowdown in March inflation to lower food prices, particularly the disinflation in rice.

Food inflation, which accounts for a substantial portion of overall inflation, eased to 2.3 percent in March, down from 2.6 percent in February.

Economic Planning Undersecretary and National Statistician Dennis Mapa noted that a significant contributor to the decline in food inflation was rice, which saw a sharper decrease of 7.7 percent compared to a smaller 4.9 percent decline in February.

The DA implemented a maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) for imported rice in January at P58 per kilogram, which was gradually reduced to P45 by March 31. The DA also imposed an MSRP on pork earlier in March, contributing to lower meat prices.

The PSA reported that other food groups, such as meat and vegetables, also experienced slower price increases, further driving down overall inflation.

“While some sectors doubted the effectiveness of our MSRP implementation, the inflation numbers clearly show that we are on the right path in protecting the welfare of millions of Filipino consumers, while also ensuring that agricultural workers and others in the value chain receive a fair return for their hard work,” said Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.

The annual contraction in rice prices in March was the sharpest since the 8.4 percent decline in March 2020, according to the PSA.

Tiu Laurel emphasized that the DA will continue to push for increased production while remaining vigilant in monitoring prices to ensure that financially challenged Filipino consumers don’t have to worry about access to affordable food.

The slowdown in inflation for the bottom 30 percent of income households to 1.1 percent in March was largely due to lower food prices. Rice alone accounts for around P18 of every P100 spent by a poor Filipino family. Department of Agriculture