Inflation

I had a rather long telephone conversation last Monday with Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Peter Favila. He called me up after reading my column “Favila hits the ceiling” which appeared on that day. Favila explained to me where he was coming from when he took a swing at media while briefing President…

MANILA, Philippines – Resistance to the government imposition of price ceilings on basic commodities has turned violent with Trade Secretary Peter Favila receiving threats and some of his personnel being harassed by angry traders and merchants.

Initially, I didn’t know where Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila was coming from when he griped against media reportage on the post-typhoon Ondoy situation. An impassioned Favila could not hide his irritation when he took a swing at media while briefing President Arroyo and other Cabinet members during the National Disaster Coordinating…

MANILA, Philippines – President Arroyo ordered yesterday that the list of basic commodities placed under price control be expanded to ensure that all residents affected by tropical storm “Ondoy” would be protected from profiteers.

THE government has imposed a price freeze on basic commodities in Metro Manila and 24 other areas under a state of calamity in the wake of storm Ondoy.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) set yesterday price ceilings on basic commodities to prevent unscrupulous traders from raising prices in the wake of the devastation caused by tropical storm “Ondoy.” “The prices of goods today must be the same as last week’s. This is effective in all the areas under…

Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Chairman Alberto Suansing said as part of the process, they will be acting on Pasang Masda’s petition of the transport group, which filed the petition last Friday. Pasang Masda wanted the minimum fare for jeep reverted to P7.50 for the first four kilometers.

MANILA, Philippines – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) expects this year’s average inflation to settle around the middle of its 2.5 percent and 4.5 percent target range and the lower end of the 3.5 percent to 5.5 percent target range for 2010.

THE ANNUAL INFLATION RATE of 1.5 percent posted in June was the lowest the country has seen in 22 years. This implies that consumer prices as a whole have shown remarkable stability over the past year. For the year so far, the average over the first half was 5 percent, which is lower than the…

BSP says more leeway to cut interest rates CONSUMER prices in June increased at their slowest pace in over two decades due to the continued drop in the price of fuel and food, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said on Tuesday.

MANILA, Philippines – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Filipinos expected consumer prices to remain relatively stable over the short term, giving it elbow room to maintain low interest rates.

Private sector economists expect price increases to slow this year but noted upside risks to inflation, particularly from the peso’s depreciation and a possible recovery of major economies, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

MANILA, Philippines – Economists have lowered their projected average inflation rate for this year from 4.5 percent to four percent, falling within the government’s official target inflation of 3.5 to 5.5 percent.

MANILA, Philippines—(UPDATE) The growth rate of consumer prices eased in March, settling at 6.4 percent year-on-year from 7.3 percent in January, according to the National Statistics Office’s (NSO) latest report on inflation.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine government remains committed to comply with internationally agreed tax standards drawn up by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, Malacañang said yesterday.

THE central bank has lowered its inflation forecast this year to 3.5 percent from 3.9 percent, Bangko Sentral Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said at a briefing for the Management Association of the Philippines yesterday.

SINGAPORE—Five of the world’s least expensive cities are in Asia, and these are Manila, Kathmandu, New Delhi, Mumbai and Karachi, a survey shows.

The rise in consumer prices is expected to slow down to its lowest quarterly pace this year in September but it would gradually pick up as credit becomes tighter, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said Friday.

After surging to double-digit levels in 2008, monetary officials said they expect the nationwide inflation rate to drop to as low as 3.9 percent this year and rise slightly to 4.7 percent in 2010.

The nationwide inflation rate fell to its lowest level in nine months at eight percent in December due largely to the sharp drop in fuel prices, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported yesterday.

Consumer prices rose at a slower pace in December due to lower oil prices, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reported Tuesday.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has set an average inflation target of 3.5 to 5.5 percent for 2010 or lower than the official average inflation range for 2009 of six percent to eight percent.