MANILA – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) may stop at two interest rate increases this year, unless there is a “significant” wage hike and if a plan to bring down rice prices through tariffs fails to push through, an analyst said Tuesday.
A third adjustment is “not our scenario,” HSBC economist Noelan Arbis said in response to a question. The BSP raised its key rate by 25 basis points twice this year.
“I think from now on BSP is going to look domestically for cues for the next rate hike. If rice tariffication doesn’t get passed into law and wage hikes are significant that brings up the likelihood that the BSP hikes rates further,” Arbis told ANC.
Inflation may settle within the government’s 2 to 4 percent target if Congress passes a law to put tariffs on rice in place of import quotas. Economic managers had said that this would help bring down prices of the staple grain and ease pressure on inflation. (ABS-CBN News)
