MANILA – Weather-related factors are expected to accelerate the November inflation to a range of 2.4 percent to 3.2 percent from the previous month’s 2.5 percent.
In a Viber message to journalists Friday, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno said higher domestic oil prices and upticks in the costs of some agricultural products contributed to the faster rate of price increases for this month.
Diokno, however, said these factors “could be partly offset by the downward adjustment of electricity rates in Meralco (Manila Electric Company) serviced areas and the contributed appreciation of the peso.”
For one, the peso continues to end the daily trade to its more than four-year high against the US dollar at 48-level.
“Looking ahead, the BSP will remain watchful of economic and financial developments to ensure that its primary mandate of price stability conducive to balanced and sustainable economic growth is achieved,” he added.
Inflation posted an uptick last October to 2.5 percent from month-ago’s 2.3 percent, primarily due to the faster rate of the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages index, as well as the acceleration in the education and the restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services indexes.
Amidst these upticks, monetary officials continue to see inflation until 2022 to stay within the 2 to 4-percent target band.
The BSP forecasts the average inflation this year to be around 2.4 percent, while it is 2.7 percent and 2.9 percent for 2021 and 2022, respectively.