Factory gate prices ease at slower pace in September

MANILA, Philippines — Factory gate prices declined at a slower pace in September, the month following the two-week reimposition of a strict community quarantine in Metro Manila and surrounding areas, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The Producer Price Index (PPI) for total manufacturing eased by a slower pace of 3.9 percent in September coming from the 4.7 percent drop in August.

The decline in September, however, was still faster compared with the annual decline of 0.1 percent in the same month last year.

Continued downward trend in the PPI for September can be attributed to the still negative rates in the indexes of 15 industry groups led by paper and paper products and petroleum products, which registered steep annual declines of 12.3 percent and 12.1 percent, respectively.

In contrast, the index of furniture and fixtures grew strongly by 17.9 percent, leading the four other industry groups that registered growth during the period. These were food manufacturing, beverages, tobacco products, and fabricated metal products.

Month-on-month, the PPI for manufacturing registered a marginal expansion of 0.03 percent coming from a decline of 0.2 percent in August when the modified enhanced community quarantine was reimposed in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal for two weeks.

Half of the 20 industry groups covered by the index registered growth in September, led by chemical products month-on-month.

Among the industry groups that registered contractions month-on-month, the decline was fastest in petroleum products.