Average farmgate price of palay up in March

The average farmgate price of palay at the national level went up to PHP18.57 per kilogram in March this year, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

PSA data released over the weekend showed that the average farmgate price of palay during the month was higher by 6.5 percent than the PHP17.43 per kilogram in the same month last year.

“Month-on-month, it increased by 2.1 percent compared with the PHP18.19 average farmgate price per kilogram in February 2023,” it said.

Among the regions, the highest farmgate price of palay during the month was seen in Ilocos at PHP20.83 per kilogram.

The lowest, meanwhile, was recorded in Eastern Visayas at PHP16.49 per kilogram.

The PSA said all regions recorded positive year-on-year growth rates in March 2023.

Ilocos Region posted the highest annual increase of 11.6 percent, while Northern Mindanao registered the lowest year-on-year increment of 0.5 percent.

“Month-on-month, 12 regions recorded increases in the average farmgate prices, while four regions posted decreases for this month,” the PSA said.

The highest increase was noted in Cordillera Administrative Region at 10.5 percent, while the fastest decline of -13.3 percent was observed in Eastern Visayas.

For the first quarter of the year, the average farmgate price of palay at the national level was at PHP18.17 per kilogram, up by 3.9 percent from the previous quarter’s average farmgate price of PHP17.49 per kilogram.

It was also higher by 4.2 percent compared to last year.

The highest average farmgate price for the first quarter was recorded in Ilocos Region at PHP19.81 per kilogram, while the lowest was recorded in Caraga at PHP16.91 per kilogram. (PNA)