For the poor, the food prices are what truly matter because they are in survival and subsistence modes, struggling to meet their most basic needs. Malakas ang hagupit ng elevated inflation sa mga mahihirap at hindi nila nararamdaman ang pagkakaiba ng inflation na eight percent, seven percent at six percent kasi mataas pa rin lahat iyan at hindi abot ng kanilang pang-araw-araw na kita (income) (Elevated inflation has a strong impact on the poor and they don’t feel the difference between inflation of eight percent, seven percent and six percent because they are all still high and not enough for their daily income).
Many people who are struggling financially have been hoping for assistance to offset the effects of inflation, but they haven’t seen any new cash distribution activities yet. If there’s anything we can do to help the executive agencies with mobilization efforts, we’re ready and willing to support them, as we’ve been doing alongside the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Labor and Employment.
Given the persistently high inflation rate, I respectfully urge the Department of Trade and Industry to review prices for basic commodities.
The 6.6 percent inflation would be welcome news and more relevant to the middle-income and upper-middle-income families because they are the ones who have larger shares of their incomes for fuel, utilities, travel and other non-food items.”
The lower Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas inflation forecast is also relevant to businesses because micro, small, medium-sized enterprises and large corporations will earn more, especially from the middle-income and upper-middle-income families.
About full-year economic growth (measured by GDP or gross domestic product), more efforts must be exerted to reopen those sectors of the country that have not returned to full in-person social activity and mobility. Their limited reopening keeps the national economy from moving full steam ahead with GDP growth above seven percent.