President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. stated on Wednesday that the government is closely monitoring price gouging amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, although he assured that the tensions have had “no significant” impact on the Philippine economy.
In an interview in Tarlac, Marcos commented on the effects of the Iran-Israel war, saying, “So far, there is no effect. So, there’s no significant effect on the economy.” This statement followed a meeting with his economic team at Malacañan Palace on Tuesday, where they assessed the potential impact of the Middle East conflict.
“‘Yun lamang, binabantayan natin ngayon ‘yung price gouging dahil ang dami ko nang nakita, nagtataas ng presyo. Hindi naman tumaas ang presyo ng langis. So, ‘yun ang babantayan natin ngayon (The price gouging is the only thing we’re monitoring right now, because I’ve seen a lot of prices going up. Prices don’t go up like this. That’s what we’re monitoring right now). That’s what we’re going to watch,” he added.
While acknowledging that the ongoing crisis in the oil-rich region may affect oil prices, Marcos noted that crude oil prices had actually fallen to USD69 from USD79 following the announcement of a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel.
When asked if the government would still grant fuel subsidies for public utility drivers and other affected stakeholders despite the decline in oil prices, Marcos deemed it unnecessary. “Kung hindi nagbago ang presyo, then we do the same like before. Ang sinasabi namin, hindi ayuda, subsidy. ‘Pag tumaas ang presyo. Kung ‘di tumaas ang presyo ng langis, there’s no need for that (If the prices don’t go up, then we do the same like before. What we’re saying is, not assistance, but subsidy. If the prices go up. If the prices don’t go up, then there’s no need for that),” he explained.
“They can proceed. We can do business as usual. The price of oil has not gone up. So, we do not need to talk about the subsidy yet. The price of oil has not gone up. It went up for one day, then it came back down,” he added.
On Tuesday, Marcos held a meeting with select Cabinet members, including the country’s economic managers, to discuss concrete measures aimed at protecting affected Filipinos from the repercussions of the ongoing tensions between Iran and Israel. The provision of fuel subsidies, cash aid, and government support to keep prices of commodities and transportation fares affordable while maintaining economic stability were among the plans discussed during the meeting.
