DTI monitoring shows erratic price movement

CEBU, Philippines — Prices of some basic goods recently decreased while others increased, based on a monitoring conducted by the Department of Trade and Industry.

Gardenia Bread is reverting to its October prices of P46.75 and P62 for 400g and 600g loaf bread, respectively.

Gardenia Pandesal also lowered its price by P1 from P37 to P36 per pack.

For milk, 80g Alaska fortified milk drink will be sold at a discounted price of P29 until the end of the year, P0.50 lower than its regular price.

DTI noted the increase in the price of some brands of canned sardines ranges only between P0.40 to P0.85.

This is heavily attributed to the high acquisition cost of herring fish (tamban) that is currently priced at P32.00 per kilo, DTI said.

To address this issue, canned sardine producers urged the government to set an SRP for tamban to reduce its cost and eventually pull down the retail price of canned sardines in the market.

The DTI was set to meet with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to study this proposal for possible consideration.

Only one brand of corned beef moved its price higher due to the rising cost of beef forequarter, a major raw material of said product.

DTI Undersecretary Ruth Castelo in a statement said the agency would continue to negotiate with the manufacturers to ensure that prices of basic goods remain to be reasonable while businesses maintain a fair return on their investment.

With recent developments in economic factors affecting the consumer prices, the DTI projects further decreases in the suggested retail prices in the first quarter of the coming year.

Dubai crude oil prices have gone down by 14% from an average of USD 79 per barrel in October down to USD 68 per barrel in November. It is projected for the price of oil to decline further to below USD 60 per barrel in 2019, indicating a downward trend in world oil prices. The peso also steadily grows stronger against the US Dollar which is now at the 52-peso range from P54 in September.

Inflation in November slowed to 6%, petroleum prices fall, supply of rice and other agricultural commodities normalize and the peso appreciate. (FREEMAN)