Philippine October Inflation Steady, May Support Rate Cuts
JustinInflation in the Philippines steadied in October, staying below the central bank's target range and may support further cuts in benchmark interest rates.
Inflation in the Philippines steadied in October, staying below the central bank's target range and may support further cuts in benchmark interest rates.
Consumer prices rose 1.7% last month from a year ago, the Philippine Statistics Authority said on Wednesday, the same pace recorded in September. It was also below the 1.8% median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey and came lower than the central bank's 2%-4% goal.
The recent typhoons are threats to inflation in November, National Statistician Dennis Mapa said in a briefing, adding they'll monitor the impact on vegetables and other produce.
"We remain vigilant in managing risks from weather disturbances, global market volatility, and other domestic factors that may affect prices in the coming months," Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a statement.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas last month said the peso's depreciation had contributed to upward price pressures alongside costlier food and electricity prices. Rice prices fell further in October. Core inflation, which excludes some food and energy items, eased to 2.5% from 2.6% in September.
The peso fell to a record low of 59.26 against the dollar in late October, although it has since recouped some of its losses. The central bank is expected to consider the inflationary impact of the peso's depreciation and the economic fallout from the corruption scandal on government infrastructure projects in setting the path for monetary policy.
Before the peso's slide, Governor Eli Remolona had signaled that monetary authorities may cut the benchmark interest rate further as the outlook for domestic economic growth has weakened amid concerns about public infrastructure spending.
The central bank has reduced its key rate by 175 basis points since August last year as declining rice prices helped slow inflation. The overnight target reverse repurchase rate stands at 4.75%, the lowest since September 2022.
