Palay output down in Jan-March – PSA
Credit to Author: EIREENE JAIREE GOMEZ| Date: Tue, 14 May 2019 16:25:44 +0000
The country’s production of the seasonally adjusted palay (unmilled rice) fell by 4.6 percent to 4.69 million metric tons (MMT) in the first quarter of 2019 as compared to 4.88 MMT a year ago, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
In its ‘Seasonally Adjusted Palay/Rice Production and Prices’ report, PSA said palay output for the January-March period also dropped by 0.4 percent from 4.711 MMT in the previous quarter.
But the figure was higher than the government’s forecast of 4.56 MMT palay production for the first quarter of 2019. Earlier, it said that while the rice harvest area may fall by 3.5 percent, yields may rise to 3.96 MT per hectare from 3.87 MT a year earlier.
Moreover, the report said the deseasonalized farmgate price of palay for the first quarter fell by 5.3 percent to P20.07 per kilogram from the price in the previous quarter.
However, it was slightly up from P20.04 per kilogram a year ago.
The wholesale price for rice climbed by 11.2 percent to P45.06 per kilogram year-on-year (yoy), PSA said. Compared to previous quarter, it was also up by 2.8 percent.
On the other hand, its equivalent retail price was P41.35 per kilogram, down 12 percent from the previous quarter and 4.28 percent yoy.
Meanwhile, the PSA said in a separate report that average farmgate price of palay further fell by 1.12 percent to P18.48 per kilogram in the third week of April from its orice a week ago. It was also down 10.85 percent from P20.73 per kilogram yoy.
It said the average wholesale price of well-milled rice during the period went down by 0.25 percent to P39.91 per kilogram a week ago. It also fell by 2.82 percent from P41.07 yoy.
At retail trade, the average price of well-milled rice was P43.68 per kilogram, 0.25 percent lower than its week ago level and 0.35 percent lower yoy.
The report added that the average wholesale price of regular-milled rice stayed at P36.24 per kilogram, down 3.26 percent from P37.46 per kilogram yoy. Retail price was P39.29 per kilogram, down 0.25 percent a week ago and 1.75 percent yoy.
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