Basic goods’ prices comply with SRP – DTI

MANILA, Philippines — The monitored prices of basic necessities and prime commodities (BNPC) in the country remain within or below the suggested retail prices (SRP) based on the latest meeting of the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC), according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

In a statement yesterday, the DTI said the NPCC met on May 31 to assess the nationwide price and supply situation of BNPCs such as manufactured goods, agricultural products, medicines and fuels, among others.?The DTI said BNPCs’ monitored prices are within or below the latest SRP Bulletin issued last Feb. 8.

“The DTI assures the public that the government is taking actions to protect their interests and ensure that basic and prime goods remain reasonably priced in the market,” DTI Consumer Protection Group Undersecretary Ruth Castelo said.

The agency gave assurance that it continues to intensify its monitoring efforts to ensure the stability of prices and availability of supplies of basic and prime goods, as it also assists the Department of Agriculture (DA) in monitoring prices of agricultural products such as sugar and onion.

“The DTI also introduced the recent launch of the Program for Farmer Retail Market. This contract-farming program seeks to establish a direct link between onion farmers and institutional buyers,” the agency said.

It added that the program enables a steady supply of local onions, especially during lean months.

During the meeting, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that red onion prices in the National Capital Region (NCR) as well as other regions continued to decline since January.

The DA reported that the prevailing retail prices for a kilo of local commercial rice are P55 (special), P46 (premium), P44 (well-milled) and P38 (regular milled).

Meanwhile, the Sugar Regulatory Administration reported that the monitored prevailing prices of retail sugar in groceries and supermarkets in the NCR as of last month are P87 per kilo for raw sugar and P105 per kilo for refined sugar.

In addition, the Department of Energy reported that there had been a cumulative drop of P4.85 for liquefied petroleum gas, P5.05 for diesel and P6.75 for kerosene as of May 30.

During the meeting, the Department of Health stated that prices for essential medicines remain stable due to the increased number of available generic brands on the market.

It added that it regularly issues SRP for COVID-19 medicines.

Last week, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual reiterated that its SRP Bulletin issued in February remains in effect until a new bulletin is published.

“Following the request of some manufacturers for price increase, citing various reasons, the DTI continues to study these requests for validation and comparison with international prices. We need to balance the interests of different sectors, we must ensure that Filipino families will have access to affordable BNPCs,” Pascual said earlier.

Castelo emphasized that the DTI carefully reviews price increase requests from manufacturers.