Become a member

Get the best offers and updates relating to Liberty Case News.

spot_img

Microsoft to launch ‘responsible AI’ foundation in Abu Dhabi

FILE PHOTO: AI (Artificial Intelligence) letters and robot hand miniature in this illustration taken, June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Paris, France — American...
HomeBusinessBusiness newsJanuary inflation steady at 2.9% as rice price growth hits over 4-yr...

January inflation steady at 2.9% as rice price growth hits over 4-yr low

Inflation. INQUIRER STOCK IMAGE

MANILA, Philippines — Inflation settled at 2.9 percent in January, unchanged from December, after a negative rice price growth offset the increase in the cost of other food items and utilities, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Tuesday.

But the January reading was higher than the 2.8 percent median estimate in an Inquirer poll of 14 economists last week.

Still, inflation settled within the 2.5-to-3.5 percent forecast range of the Bangko Sentral for last month.

At a press conference, National Statistician Claire Dennis Mapa said higher prices of food items like tomatoes, pork, and galunggong (round cad) contributed to the price gains last month.

Costlier rent, water bills, and LPG were also a source of upward price pressures.

But rice, a major food staple, posted a price growth of -2.3 percent, cushioning the faster inflation in other commodities.