By Brian Jules Campued
The headline inflation in the Philippines is expected to settle within the range of 3.4% to 4.2% for March, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) announced Monday.
The BSP said in its month-ahead inflation forecast that higher prices of rice and meat, along with higher domestic oil prices and electricity rates, will contribute to the upward price pressures for March.
On the other hand, it added that “lower prices of fruits, vegetables, and fish along with the peso appreciation could contribute to downward price pressures.”
“Going forward, the BSP will continue to monitor developments affecting the outlook for inflation and growth in line with its data-dependent approach to monetary policy decision-making,” the Central Bank said in a statement.
In February, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that the headline inflation settled at 3.4% from 2.8% in January.
The PSA noted that faster inflation in February was influenced by higher increases in food and non-alcoholic beverage prices. – avds
