Remolona flags inflation spike risk

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. warned that rising global oil prices and the peso's depreciation streak could push inflation above five percent, a level last seen nearly two years ago.

- DERCO ROSAL

"We do scenario analysis today [Friday] in which we focus on particular risks. Oil is one of the big risks that we worry about. We have a bad scenario, if I may call it that, in which our inflation rate could exceed five percent," Remola said in a OneNews interview on Friday, June 20.

"But we hope it doesn't happen and we're carefully watching that," he added.

The last time inflation accelerated faster than five percent was in September 2023, when it posted a 6.1 percent rate. It then gradually declined throughout the year until May 2025, when it clocked in at 1.3 percent — its slowest in nearly six years since November 2019.

Remolona cited the combination of rising Dubai crude oil prices and the sharp devaluation of the local currency as the major contributors to a spike in consumer prices.