Monetary Board raises policy rates by .25 percentage points to curb inflation

November 15, 2018

The Monetary Board, policy-making body of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, raised policy rates by .25 percentage points to 4.75 percent on Thursday as it tries to curb inflation. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Officer-in-Charge Cyd Amador Tuano said the decision was made "given the upside risks to the inflation outlook and given that inflation expectations have remained elevated as supply-side, possible wage pressures continue to drive price developments." The central bank has raised policy rates by 1.75 percentage since May as inflation began rising. The inflation rate, which has been rising for nine months, held steady at 6.7 percent in October. The move was done even as "latest inflation forecasts show inflation settling within the target band of 3.0 percent ± 1.0 percentage point in 2019 and 2020, after considering the impact of non-monetary measures, including the rice tariffication bill and the suspension of the oil excise tax," according to the statement.  The Monetary Board "believes that prospects for the domestic economy remain generally favorable and allow some scope for a measured adjustment in the policy rate to rein in inflation expectations and preempt further second-round effects." The Monetary Board "continues to emphasize the need for follow-through non-monetary measures to mitigate the impact of supply-side factors on inflation. "  DMS