Rice prices seen to drop by at least P7 due to rice tariffication law.

Photo from PTVNews

MANILA – The prices of rice are expected to decrease by P2 to P7 per kilo following the signing of the rice tariffication law by President Rodrigo R. Duterte, the Department of Finance (DOF) said on Tuesday.

“The implementation of the rice tariffication law is vital to the national interest and it should be done as soon as possible,” DOF Assistant Secretary Tony Lambino said in the weekly economic briefing in Malacañang.

Lambino allayed the fears of farmers’ groups that the new law will be disadvantageous to them.

“Ang gusto po nating gawin (What we want to do) is through rice tariffication iyong makakalap po nating taripa ay para sa mga magsasaka lamang at iyan po ay naka-earmark po based on the law (tariffs collected are solely for farmers and it will be earmarked based on the law),” he said.

Lambino expressed confidence that local farmers will be able to compete internationally following the signing of the law.

He cited data from the National Economic Development Authority that showed 57 provinces are rice growing and have the potential to be internationally competitive adding some areas are already competitive.

“Because of better productivity and the use of technology and agricultural sciences ay makakalaban po ang maraming lugar sa Pilipinas na rice growing (many rice-growing places in the Philippines can compete),” he said.

Aside from lowering the prices of rice in the country, Lambino said the law’s passage is also seen to lower inflation significantly by 0.6 percentage point based on estimates from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

Lambino said the tariffication of rice in the country has been delayed for more than 20 years already.

“Dalawang extension na po ang binigay sa atin (We have already been given two extensions), based on our international commitments to the WTO. So since 1996 ay humingi na po tayo ng (we have been asking for) special treatment for rice and we have been saying that we will improve productivity before we tariffy,” Lambino said.

“So we are now fulfilling our international commitment para po (so that) we are true to our word and also, so that we do not run the risk that other countries will retaliate in terms of tariffs on other Filipino products. So we really needed to do this,” he added.

Lambino said the National Food Authority (NFA), which previously had the monopoly in importing rice, will restructure and handle emergency buffer stocking under the new rice tariffication law.

Duterte signed the rice tariffication bill into law last Friday.

The signing will result in a switch from the current quota system in importing rice to a tariff system, where rice can be imported more freely.

Source and Original Article from: >>> PTVNews

Comments

Former Iloilo provincial administrator: "Robredo won by systematic cheating"

Former Iloilo provincial administrator Manuel “Boy” Mejorada expressed his thoughts via his blog, saying that Vice President Leonor “Leni” Robredo won the May 2016 elections over Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos via “ systematic cheating ”. Former Iloilo provincial administrator Manuel “Boy” Mejorada and Vice President Leni Robredo / Photo credit to the owner Mejorada said that how Robredo allegedly cheated in the elections is being uncovered in the manual recount of votes by the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET). He says that there is already about 5,000 worth of voted that Robredo lost in the first two weeks of the manual recount. Although some Robredo supporters called this “ fake news ”, Mejorada says that it cannot be because the information came from people inside the PET itself. Robredo has appealed to the PET to allow 25% shading of ballot to be counted as valid, as did the machine but PET has denied her request. Vice President Leni Robred...

Goodbye, Ma Ling: FDA orders recall, seizure of imported canned meat

FDA advised the public to exercise "extreme caution" in purchasing and consuming processed pork meat products. The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) temporarily banned the distribution of pork meat products, including the meatloaf brand Ma Ling, from countries affected by the African Swine Fever (ASF). Photo from unlideals.com According to Memorandum 2019-048 , the FDA directed all importers, distributors, retail outlets, and other dealers “to immediately recall all pork meat products imported from countries suspected to be affected by ASF virus.” The ASF-affected countries are China, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, Zambia, South Africa, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Mongolia, Moldova, and Belgium. As defined by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the African Swine Fever is a highly contagious hemorrhagic disease of pigs, warthogs, European wild boar, and American wild pigs. It is caused by DNA...

College Dean slams Duterte critics: 'wag na maghilahan... sayang ang oras, salapi at dunong sa ganitong paraan'

Photo from Joeys Gold Yong's Facebook profile Isang dating Dean ng College of Business Administration sa Perpetual Help College of Manila ang nagbigay ng kanyang kakaibang komento patungkol sa mga kumakalaban sa administrasyon ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte. Si Joeys Gold Yong na dating Vice President ng PUP Graduate School Doctor in Business Administration Society ay may kakaibang banat sa mga kritiko ng pangulo. Ayon sa kanya, paano nalang kung ibabalik lahat ng ginawa ng pangulo para sa bayan? Hinimok rin nya ang mga kumakalaban sa gobyerno na huwag nang maghilahang pababa, sapagkat kahit sino pa man ang pangulo, siya ay dapat igalang at suportahan. Narito ang kanyang nakakatuwang Facebook post: Mahilig kayo magbilang...gusto ko din magbilang abot ng maliit kong nalalaman sa nangyayari sa aking kapaligiran. Ito ba ang Ilan sa mga ipinaglalaban natin? 1. Ibalik ang tanim bala 2. Ibalik ang Airport taxi 3. Ibalik sa drugs yung 700,000! 4. Ibal...

Partner for Change Philippines

Search This Blog