THE inflation rate in Davao Region is seen to go down to three percent this year brought about by the continuing reduction in the prices of gasoline, an official from National Economic and Development Authority (Neda)-Davao said Tuesday.
In a press briefing at the Philippine Information Agency (PIA)-Davao office, Neda-Davao Director Maria Lourdes Lim said the oil price adjustments in the world market, which triggered local gas prices to go down, will favor mostly the importers who will pay less for the transport cost of goods.
Last year, Davao Region noted 3.7 percent inflation rate, higher by .5 percentage point as compared to 3.2 percent registered in 2013. The region’s inflation rate has remained lower than 4.2 percent in 2014 recorded on a national level.
“There are sectors that are favored, such as importers who will pay less, and (consumers who) can utilize more of (products and services) because of lower prices,” she said.
Also, Lim sees the players engaged in the logistics to benefit from the reducing oil prices as well as the transport sector.
In her presentation, the official reported that the region posted a total of US$1.768 billion worth of exports as of third quarter in 2014, as compared to US$1.535 billion in 2013.
Exports, meanwhile, took a leap from US$767 million in 2013 to a whopping $US1.168 billion.
On the region’s top export crops, all but two recorded an increase in the production volume last year.
Among these crops, corn reported the highest production increase at 23 percent to 280,293 metric tons (MT) last year from 227,013 MT in 2013.
Cacao recorded 11 percent increase from 1,758.58 MT during the first half of 2013 to 1,982.88 MT during the same period last year.
Palay’s production level also increased to 452,267 MT last year from 421,692 MT in 2013 while banana, the region’s to export, recorded a total of 1.647 million MT in 2014 from 1.544 million MT in 2013. Both crops posted an increase of 7 percent.
Coconut production, meanwhile, remained at 1.170 million MT in 2013 and 2014. Production of coffee decreased by 12 percent from 4,885.6 (1st semester 2013) down to 4,316 MT (1st semester 2014).
Lim attributed the decrease to conversion of coffee plantations to banana, particularly in Davao City.
Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on February 04, 2015.
