Well-milled rice prices average P56.21/kg in early Feb.
THE national average retail price of well-milled rice in early February was P56.21 per kilogram (kg), according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The PSA reported on Tuesday that prices rose 1.43% during the Feb. 1-5 period, which it calls the first phase of the month, compared with the P55.42 per kg average in late January.
Central Luzon posted the highest average retail price during the period, with well milled rice selling for P58 per kg.
At the low end was Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) with well-milled rice prices at P53.08 per kg during the period.
The PSA said that the average price for a kilogram of regular-milled rice was P50.36 per kg during the first phase of February.
It reported that BARMM (Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) posted the highest average price of P54.37 per kg for this variety of rice, while Western Visayas was at the low end at P44.28 per kg.
During the period, brown sugar averaged P77.08 per kg.
The PSA reported that prices were the highest in Calabarzon at P88.88 per kg. The lowest price was reported in the Zamboanga Peninsula at P64.9 7per kg.
Refined sugar, on the other hand, averaged P87.95 per kg in early February. The high and low were set in Calabarzon and Zamboanga Peninsula at P97.06 per kg and P78.96 per kg, respectively.
Additionally, galunggong or round scad posted an average retail price of P214.78 per kg in early February, up from P213.34 per kg during the second phase of January.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) expects fish prices, including galunggong, may drop 30% with the end of the closed fishing season in Visayan and Mindanao waters.
Commercial fishing was banned in several major fisheries starting in the fourth quarter, according to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
The closed fishing season is a conservation measure aimed at allowing fish stocks to regenerate. — Adrian H. Halili