Average price of rice down since implementation of price cap
Average price of rice down since implementation of price cap
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00:00 Executive Order 39 instructing to cap the prices of rice has had a positive effect thus far,
00:07 the Trade and Industry Department asserts.
00:09 The average price of rice, it claims, went down 5 pesos,
00:13 even as groups of retailers urged to deep-six the price cap immediately.
00:17 Our Claes Elpardilla on the DTI and the DA to soon issue recommendations to the President on the price cap directive.
00:27 Beneng stopped working past retirement age.
00:30 To make ends meet, she bought the cheapest variety of rice for 41 pesos a kilo.
00:36 As long as it's edible, don't make it bad.
00:39 Of course, you have to split your money when you're going to the market.
00:45 To provide Beneng and millions of Filipinos with affordable staple grain,
00:50 President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. issued Executive Order 39 earlier this month.
00:57 This sets the price of a kilo of regular-mealed rice at 41 pesos
01:02 and capped the cost of well-mealed rice at 45 pesos.
01:06 The Department of Trade and Industry said this helped in bringing down the price of rice.
01:13 According to the DTI, the average price of rice has fallen 5 pesos a kilo nearly three weeks since the price ceiling took effect.
01:23 87.5 percent overall nationwide compliance rate.
01:29 In that regard, we can say it's successful.
01:33 If it's RMR or regular-mealed rice, the average price was 47.37 when it started.
01:43 Now, it's 42.22.
01:46 In WMR or well-mealed rice, the price is also falling.
01:53 We can see that there is effectiveness.
01:57 The DTI pointed out that providing 15,000 pesos cash aid for rice retailers
02:03 who sold their produce at a loss helped in achieving a high compliance rate.
02:08 But many rice retailers are unsure whether or not they can still absorb or endure any more income losses due to the price ceiling.
02:19 If there's no one to give us rice, we can still sell it.
02:23 It's okay to sell cash. It's a big deal for us.
02:29 I'm a businessman. Of course, I want to get rid of the price.
02:33 The price is not accurate to us. We're more stingy.
02:39 The Trade and Industry and Agriculture Departments will issue a joint recommendation to the chief executive next week.
02:47 And three of many considerations are...
02:50 It's included if the compliance rate is increasing, if the price of the two rice varieties we monitor is decreasing,
02:58 and if there is a simultaneous increase in supply.
03:03 We can see many favorable circumstances that augur well for a recommendation to lift the 30.9 price ceiling.
03:16 Earlier, the Samahang Industria ng Agrikultura proposed to leave the price cap by the end of September.
03:23 The farmers' group projects harvest for unhusked rice could reach more than 10 million metric tons before year-end.
03:32 This would ultimately dip the price of well-mealed rice to 42 to 44 pesos a kilo come peak season.
03:40 They proposed to put price cap on imported rice instead should the government decide to reduce tariff on rice.
03:48 It will go to the benefit of the consumer because you will remove the tariff on the protection of our farmers.
04:00 If you cut the price of 8 pesos and 36 pesos per kilo, you will not give it to the consumer because you will not cut the price of imported rice by 5 percent.
04:15 So it will go to the importer, because the importer will not lower the price.
04:24 Laysa Pardilia for the nation.