The average price of regular milled rice fell 20 percent year-on-year to P40.66 per kilo in the first half of August, potentially easing overall inflation if the downtrend holds through month-end.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) also showed a 2.2 percent month-on-month decline from July, when headline inflation dropped to a six-year low of 0.9 percent.
As rice makes up nearly 9 percent of the consumer price index, its sustained affordability could help offset price pressures from other key food items such as meat and fish.
Pork liempo averaged P389.09 per kilo, up 9.2 percent from a year ago, while chicken prices climbed 6.1 percent to P217.82.
Fish prices also surged: bangus (milkfish) rose 13 percent to P230.70, galunggong (round scad) jumped 14 percent to P227.60, and tilapia increased 12 percent to P184.34 per kilo.
The PSA is scheduled to conduct its second-half August price survey ahead of the official August inflation report on September 5.
If rice prices remain stable—or continue to decline—they could further anchor food inflation and offset costlier protein sources, reinforcing the current disinflationary trend.
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