MANILA — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has extended the country’s ban on rice imports until the end of 2025 in order to shield farmers from the impact of cheaper imported rice.
Marcos had earlier ordered a 60-day suspension of rice imports starting from September 1 in an effort to protect farmers during the local harvest and keep rice prices in check.
The order, signed last month and shared to the media on Tuesday, covers the import of regular milled and well-milled rice but excluding varieties not commonly produced locally.
The Philippines, one of the world’s largest rice importers, shipped in 4.8 million metric tons of rice last year, mostly from Vietnam and Thailand.
The annual rate of increase in rice prices in the Philippines has reversed course since hitting a 15-year high of 24.4% in March last year, declining by 16.9% in September compared to a year earlier.
The fall in prices helped to tame inflation, which averaged 1.7% in the nine-month period, below the government’s 2.0% to 4.0% target.
—Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by David Stanway
