Marcos backs P50 price cap on imported rice

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is supportive of the measure imposing a price cap for imported rice, Malacañang said on Monday.

At a press briefing, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said the Department of Agriculture already provided a recommendation to the National Price Coordinating Council as regards the proposed P50 price cap per kilo of imported rice.

“Actually, sabi po ni Secretary Kiko Laurel ay nagbigay na po sila ng rekomendasyon sa National Price Coordinating Council para magkaroon ng deliberation patungkol dito. At ang kanilang price cap na isinangguni ay P50 for imported rice,'' Castro said. 

(Actually, Secretary Kiko Laurel said they already gave a recommendation to the National Price Coordinating Council so it can start deliberating this matter. The proposed price cap for imported rice is P50.) 

''So, ito po ang ibinigay din na mungkahi ni Secretary Kiko Laurel kay Pangulo, so ito naman ay sinusuportahan,'' she added.

(This was also Secretary Kiko Laurel's recommendation to the President and this is being supported.)

The DA is eyeing to implement a P50 price cap on imported rice as the agency monitored an “unreasonable” increase in prices, pointing to a supposed exploitation of the global oil shock situation amid the Middle East conflict.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the agency monitored that several retailers are selling imported rice at P55 to P58 per kilo.

Among interventions being done by the DA to prevent rice price shock is to make available P45 to P48 per kilo rice in several markets. —RF, GMA Integrated News