Palace touts Duterte’s ‘competence’ in handling the economy after inflation dropped to 16-month low

Malacañang on Tuesday touted President Rodrigo Duterte’s “competence” in handling the economy after inflation slipped to a 16-month low in April.

Inflation clocked in at 3% last month, slower than the 4.5% registered in April and the 3.3% registered in March this year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

The latest figure prompted some analysts to project an interest rate cut by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas which hiked rates last year to temper inflation caused by high fuel prices and food supply bottlenecks.

“The Palace is happy to learn about the slowing down of inflation to 3 percent in April of this year. This, notwithstanding that the El Niño phenomenon is an area of concern, where food production gets affected and may jack up prices,” presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.

Panelo expressed confidence that inflation would continue to ease by the end of the year due to the Rice Tariffication Law, which allows unlimited importation of rice and imposes tariff on imports from neighbors in Southeast Asia.

“We give credit to the President’s strong political will and decisive action in addressing this national issue,” he said.

“Much has been said about the economic policies of the Chief Executive. The current disinflation proves President Duterte’s competence in managing our country's economy while it disproves those who criticize him for over-focusing on our nation's peace and order situation.”

Duterte, who won the 2016 presidential election on a campaign platform that focused on fighting corruption, illegal drugs and criminality, had said he was not an expert on the economy. He also said during the campaign that he was willing to copy the economic agenda of his rival presidential candidates.

Panelo said the government, through the President's economic managers, has been constantly monitoring the prices of basic goods and commodities and “will not relax its efforts but will press ahead with programs designed to assist each and every Filipino with their expenses.”

According to the inter-agency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), it expects inflation to settle within 3% to 4% this year, in line with the government target of 2% to 4%. — Virgil Lopez/RSJ, GMA News