THE national rice inventory declined 12.8% year on year to 2.33 million metric tons (MT) as of Jan. 1, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
In its rice and corn inventory report, the PSA said rice stocks held by households rose 7.6% year on year to 1.29 million MT, while inventories held by commercial warehouses fell 27.5% to 689.96 thousand MT.
Rice stocks held by the National Food Authority (NFA) fell 32.8% to 352.52 thousand MT.
The rice inventory fell 15.7% from 2.77 million MT at the start of December.
Household rice stocks fell 20.3% month on month, while inventory held by commercial warehouses fell 13.2% over the same period.
NFA rice volumes fell 0.1% month on month.
“The total rice inventory level during the month was composed of 55.3% households (stocks), 29.6% commercial warehouses, and 15.1% with the NFA,” the PSA said.
Meanwhile, the national corn inventory as of Jan. 1 rose 12.6% year on year to 914.07 thousand MT.
Corn held by households rose 37.7% to 289.03 thousand MT, while inventory in commercial warehouses rose 3.8% to 625.03 thousand MT.
Month on month, corn stocks fell 4.9% from the start of December.
Corn held by households fell 17.9%, while stocks in commercial warehouses rose 2.6%.
The NFA held no corn stocks during the period, according to the PSA.
“The total corn stocks during the month (consisted of) 31.6% in households and 68.4% in commercial warehouses,” the PSA said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave