MANILA – The government’s 4-percent inflation rate target for 2019 is well within reach, a senator said Sunday, saying that the downtrend in fuel prices will continue.
“In 2019, dahil nakita rin namin sa aming sariling pag-aanalisa na ang presyo ng langis ay patuloy na bababa. Ito ay may epekto rin sa pangunahing bilihin natin sa loob ng bansa,” Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said in an interview on Super Radyo dzBB.
According to him, if the inflation rate exceeds the 4-percent target, consumers will still feel price increases on basic commodities.
“’Pag lumagpas sa target na 4 percent ang ibig sabihin mararamdaman pa rin ang bilis ng taas ng presyo. May clamor pa rin na itaas ang pamasahe, na magiging domino effect. So importante na nasa loob tayo ng target range,” he added.
Gatchalian’s projection was based on the decline in fuel prices, which determines the prices of basic commodities.
“Dahil nakita rin namin na ang presyo ng langis ay patuloy na bababa at may epekto rin sa pangunahing bilihin sa loob ng bansa,” he said.
Aside from oil prices, Gatchalian said that the fare and prices of food, such as fish and vegetable, also declined in December last year.
“Ang isda ang laki ng ibinaba, ang gulay halos kalahati, ang pamasahe. Maraming bumaba at magtutuloy-tuloy yan in the next few months,” he added.
Last Friday, reports said that inflation rate slowed to 5.1 percent in December last year – the lowest annual rate since June 2018 according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. (GMA News)
