Factors that are causing headline inflation in the Philippines to rise are expected to persist for longer. This is because climate change is threatening food production, while seasonal energy prices are also rising.
The United States Climate Prediction Center said in its latest monthly bulletin that the El Niño climate phenomenon is now expected to last until at least March next year. The agency added that the odds of at least a “strong” El Niño have increased to 71 percent from 67 percent.
El Niño is a weather pattern that can cause droughts and other extreme weather events, which can damage crops and disrupt food production.
Meanwhile, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that its global Food Price Index dipped in August, but that rice and sugar prices remained high.
Rice and sugar are two of the main items that have contributed to the recent rise in headline inflation in the Philippines.
The FAO said that its All Rice Price Index rose by 9.8 percent from July levels to reach a 15-year nominal high. This is due to trade disruptions caused by India’s ban on Indica white rice exports. India is the world’s largest rice exporter.
The FAO Sugar Price Index rose by 1.3 percent from July, mainly due to concerns about the impact of the El Niño phenomenon on sugarcane crops, as well as below-average rains in August and persistent dry weather conditions in Thailand.
Source: PhilNews24 | September 27, 2023
