A gasoline station employee attends to motorists as they gas up at a refueling station in Quezon City on July 20, 2020. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File
MANILA - Inflation likely settled within 2.2 to 3 percent range in July, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' Department of Economic Research said Thursday.
Upward price pressures could be due to higher domestic petroleum prices and an uptick in rice prices, the BSP-DER said in a statement.
Increases were partly offset by slightly lower electricity rates, it said.
"Going forward, the BSP will continue to monitor economic and financial developments to ensure that monetary policy settings remain consistent with the objective of price stability conducive to a balanced and sustained growth of the economy," the statement said.
The consumer price index rose 2.5 percent in June.
BSP Gov. Benjamin Diokno earlier said inflation was "the least" of their worries as it stands ready to use a “full range” of monetary tools as needed to support the economy.
The BSP has reduced key interest rate, used by banks to price loans, to a record low of 2.25 percent.
ANC, ANC Top, BSP, interest rate, inflation, consumer price index, rice prices, domestic oil