Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he has lifted the cap on domestic rice prices, about a month after imposing it to rein in a spike in the cost of the staple grain.
(Bloomberg) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he has lifted the cap on domestic rice prices, about a month after imposing it to rein in a spike in the cost of the staple grain.
Marcos, who’s also agriculture chief, imposed a ceiling on rice prices across the country on Sept. 5 after what he said was an “alarming” increase in its cost and reports of hoarding by traders. “As of today, we are lifting the price caps on rice,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
The removal comes after a decline of as much as 15% in domestic rice prices from the time it was implemented through Oct. 3, based on the latest costs monitored by the nation’s agriculture department.
Rice supply in the Philippines, a major rice importer, has improved as farmers began harvesting last month. Prices of the grain in Asia have dropped in the past weeks after rallying to the highest in almost 15 years in August as concerns over tight supply eased.
Marcos’s announcement comes days after the Philippine government said it will provide 12.7 billion pesos ($224 million) in financial assistance to about 2.3 million rice farmers to help them cope with El Nino and higher production costs.
The Philippine leader said there’s still a need to fix the agriculture sector and to continue providing assistance to farmers.
(Adds more details throughout.)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.