Think tank: BSP won’t hike rates in Nov meet By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
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ESPITE the 6.1-percent inflation rate posted in September, Moody’s Analytics does not expect the Monetary Board to raise interest rates in its next meeting in November. Last week, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that rice prices, which posted a 17.9-percent increase and was the highest in 14 years, was among the major contributors to higher inflation. (Full story here: https://businessmirror. com.ph/2023/10/06/septemberinflation-rises-to-6-1-rice-pricesblamed/)
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Given this, Moody’s Analytics said “it looks increasingly unlikely” that inflation will fall within the 2 to 4 percent target set by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) with the fourth quarter of this year. “BSP’s monetary policy meeting in November will be one to watch. Monetary Board members will have the benefit of September-quarter GDP results and the October inflation print before having to make their decision. We expect them to leave the policy rate at 6.25 percent,” Moody’s Analytics said. In a weekly preview, Moody’s Analytics said the high inflation in September was also due to the decision of the Manila Electric Co. to increase
electricity prices. This was on the back of the global increase in energy prices. “The reading was much stronger than our and the market consensus forecasts of 5.2 percent and 5.3 percent, respectively, and was at the top end of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ expected range for the month of 5.3 percent to 6.1 percent,” Moody’s Analytics said. Meanwhile, ANZ Research said there is little room for monetary easing in Asia, including in the Philippines. The region’s central banks may be prompted to move in lock-step with the United States Federal Reserve. Earlier, the Philippines’ monetary authorities said the US Federal Reserve’s actions are of less concern to
the decision of the Monetary Board to raise, maintain, or cut rates. (Full story: https://businessmirror. com.ph/2023/09/22/bsp-chiefhints-at-possible-rate-hikes-untilnext-year/) BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. said the Monetary Board’s primary consideration was the increase in fares and electricity rates, as these could add 0.5 percent to the inflation forecast of the BSP, especially in 2024. “While Asia’s monetary policy settings are suitable for periods of benign growth-inflation dynamics, the region’s central banks have little room to move away from the Fed’s path,” ANZ, however, said. See “BSP,” A2
BusinessMirror
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RICE SUFFICIENCY LEVEL FALLS TO 24-YEAR LOW w
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Tuesday, October 10, 2023 Vol. 18 No. 358
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 22 pages |
By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas
Climate body eyes new agreement with Qatar
@jearcalas
& Cai U. Ordinario
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@caiordinario
HE Philippines’s self-sufficiency ratio (SSR) in rice fell to 77 percent in 2022, the lowest in more than two decades, as the country remained as one of the world’s largest importers of the staple.
Latest data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the country’s rice SSR last year was lower than the 81.5 percent level recorded in 2021. Historical PSA data showed that last year’s rice SSR was the lowest in 24 years or since 1998, when it settled at 72.1 percent. This is the third time, since 1988, that the country’s rice SSR was below 80 percent. The PSA defines SSR as the extent to which the country’s domestic production can meet its domestic requirement. “A ratio of less than 100 percent indicates inadequacy of food production to cope with the demand of the population,” the PSA said. “The higher the ratio, the greater the self-sufficiency.” Danilo V. Fausto, President of the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI), said the country’s latest rice SSR figure is “very disheartening.” “We are struggling very hard to increase our production, our sufficiency and productivity. We are pushed back by recommendations that give incentives to importers than to producers,” Fausto told the BusinessMirror in an interview. “If these tariff reductions push through, we can expect that our self-sufficiency would not just be 77 percent but will be below the passing grade of 75 percent. Hindi lang tayo bagsak, kung hindi repeater na,” he added. The country’s milled rice output last year fell slightly to 12.921 million metric tons (MMT) from the record-level of 13.054 MMT registered in 2021, according to the PSA. During the same year, the Philippines’s rice imports surged to a record 3.863 MMT, about 30 percent higher than the 2.967 MMT it imported in 2021, PSA data showed. See “Rice,” A2
By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
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APPEAL TO PUBLIC Drivers and Operators of AGUAJODA, a jeepney association on Remedios Street, Manila, appeal to passengers for understanding as they start to charge an additional one peso for the minimum fare on Monday, October 9, 2023. According to drivers, some passengers complain that they should not charge additional fare without a fare matrix but some of modernized jeepneys in Metro Manila route have implemented the additional one peso minimum fare. ROY DOMINGO
BUSINESS GROUPS OPPOSE PROPOSED NEW CHARGES OF S.E.C. By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan
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USINESS groups are opposing a proposal by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to increase its fees and charges such as on total indebtedness, saying the increased cost of doing business will also hurt small and medium enterprises,among others. In a joint statement issued October 2,2023 but distributed to media on Monday, business groups penned a letter to SEC Chairman and CEO Emilio B. Aquino, to voice their objections to such proposal. The objectors are: the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc., Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Phil-
export), Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop), Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), Chamber of Thrift Banks, Philippine Retailers Association, Philippine Franchise Association (PFA), Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Organization Inc., Philippine Association of Legitimate Service Contractors and Stratbase ADR Institute for Strategic and International Studies. Citing Administrative Order No. 31,s. 2012 and DOF-DBMNEDA Joint Circular No. 1-2013 in relation to fixing regulatory fees, the business groups said national government agencies should seek to strike a balance between cost recovery and the socioeconomic impact of the impositions. “Any increase in fees must be just and reasonable and minimize, if not avoid, the unintended impact
on established national priorities and the general public,” the business groups said. They stressed that when the SEC increased its fees in 2017, stakeholders were able to show that the fees being collected by the SEC from stock market transactions alone were more than enough to fund SEC’s entire operations based on SEC’s requested appropriations from the General Appropriation Act (GAA), which budget “presumably” is the cost of regulations. “This does not yet include the myriad of other fees SEC charges to new and existing companies for various corporate actions and document requirements,” the business groups said. Moreover, they said the current fee collections of SEC “already far exceed” the cost of its operations. The business groups said this is
evident in the purchase of its own building in Makati CBD reportedly costing about P2.5 billion, in addition to about 90 commercial parking slots estimated at about P1 million per slot. “While we appreciate the effort to streamline SEC processes when the Commission offered IT services such as the CIFFS eSearch Facility to enable the public to purchase and download digital copies of documents submitted to the SEC, there is serious concern on the cost,” the business groups said in a statement on Monday. Under the previous downloading facility (i-View facility), users could download copies of GIS, AFS, and other SEC filings for only P0.50 per page. However, when SEC launched the CIFFS eSearch Facility on August 1, 2023, its charges went up See “Business,” A2
HE Climate Change Commission (CCC) is eyeing to sign a new bilateral agreement with Qatar to help boost the adaptation and mitigation measures of local government units (LGU). “We are working closely with Qatar in line with President Marcos’s vision to address the climate crisis through collaboration with the international community. Qatar’s expertise and support can greatly benefit the Philippines to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change,” CCC Vice Chairperson and Executive Director Robert E.A. Borje said in a statement on Monday. Borje met with Qatar’s Ambassador to the Philippines Ahmed Saad N. Al- Homidi to discuss the proposed partnership. They talked about the possible technical assistance and policy development, particularly in areas under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). Ambassador Al-Homidi said Qatar is open to exploring such cooperation with the Philippines. “Our countries are working on signing a Memorandum of Understanding that will benefit both of us and serve as a catalyst for more bilateral partnerships,” the Qatari diplomat said at the meeting. Borje also invited Qatar to become a member of its Empowering Nurtured Alliance for Climate Action and Transformation (ENACT) initiative. ENACT is CCC’s coordination mechanism with its development partners and embassies to facilitate regular dialogue for exchanging best practices on climate-related issues. CCC has been pushing for local government units to complete their Local Climate Change Action Plan (LCCAP) to mitigate or minimize the impact of high global temperatures, which are expected to bring in more extreme weather. It reported 85.95 percent 1,474 of the 1,715 LGUs nationwide already submitted their LCCAPs as of last August.
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 56.6170 n JAPAN 0.3797 n UK 69.0897 n HK 7.2292 n CHINA 7.7420 n SINGAPORE 41.4170 n AUSTRALIA 35.9801 n EU 59.7762 n KOREA 0.0421 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.0958 Source: BSP (October 9, 2023)