Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno expressed optimism that the rate of inflation in the country will continue to slow down in the first quarter of next year.
Speaking at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum, Diokno said that inflation may even dip below 2%. by the first quarter of 2024.
“Sa first quarter of next year baka nga mag-below 2% ang inflation,” said the official.
He mentioned that monetary officials also anticipate the inflation rate to fall within the government's target range of 2% to 4% by the last quarter of 2023.
However, he clarified that a lower inflation rate does not imply that prices will no longer rise
“Ang ibig sabihin lang ay ‘yung pagtaas ng presyo ay hindi kasing taas nung before,” Diokno added.
One contributing factor to the easing of inflation, according to Diokno, is the downward trend in oil prices.
After experiencing significant surges due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict, fuel prices are now stabilizing. This decrease in oil prices has a cascading effect on the costs of other commodities.
In May, the inflation rate slowed to 6.1% from the peak of 8.7% recorded in January, which marked the highest level since November 2008.
The government's economic experts have earlier revised their inflation forecast to a narrower range of 5% to 6% for this year, down from the previous estimate of 5% to 7%.
Meanwhile, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) has recently declared that the inflation rate in the country is already in a “downward trend”.
