Refined sugar prices decline, says regulator

Retail prices of refined sugar went down by P1 per kilo to P49 over the past two weeks as authorities reallocated export stocks for the domestic market.

The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said that as of June 25, some 55,167 tons of sugar had been distributed to local markets instead of being shipped out to countries other than the United States.

The volume is about three-fifths of 90,000 tons of the so-called “D” sugar—meant for export to the “world market”—which the SRA authorized for reclassification.

Through Sugar Orders No. 10 and No. 11, respectively issued last May and earlier this month, the SRA designated the said volume for conversion into “B” sugar, meant for domestic consumption.

These orders were meant to help bring down sugar prices that started to rise due to an increase in local demand, the SRA said in a statement.

Citing price monitoring reports, the SRA said that as of June 15, the mill gate price of B sugar had been reduced to P1,635.33 per 50-kilogram bag from the P1,746.63 average before the D sugar was reallocated.

Also, the prevailing price of refined sugar in groceries went down to P49 a kilo as of June 24, from P50 on June 13.

Earlier this month, the SRA said domestic consumption of refined sugar for the current crop year that ends in August is expected to grow 99 percent as government efforts to curb smuggling revealed “real sugar demand figures.”

For the full year, the SRA expects Filipinos to consume some 1.1 million tons.