Sugar prices remain high

MANILA, Philippines — Prices of sugar in the market showed no signs of declining despite improved production at the start of the milling season.

Latest data from the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) showed that retail price of refined sugar is now P64 per kilogram, up 21 percent from a year ago.

The price of washed and raw sugar also rose to P59 and P55 per kilo, respectively, compared to the previous year’s P47 and P48.

The wholesale price of refined sugar is also nearing the P3,000-mark per 50-kg bag. It is now being sold at P2,700 from only P2,000 last year.

This despite improved production of raw sugar which grew 51 percent to 4,763 metric tons at the start of the milling season two weeks ago.

A sugar crop year starts every September and ends in August.

The country’s raw sugar demand was also significantly lower at 21, 458 MT.

The Philippines is set to import up to 300,000 MT of sugar for the second time this year in an effort to bring down prices of the commodity.

Meanwhile, the SRA hopes big grocery chains will follow the move of Gokongwei-led Robinsons Supermarket to bring down prices of sugar amid the continued rise of prices of other basic commodities.

Robinsons Supermarket, a division of listed Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc., is selling refined sugar at P50 per kilo and raw brown sugar at P45 per kilo in a move aimed at curbing inflation and bringing down sugar prices.

Other supermarkets are selling sugar at P63 to P71 per kilo for refined and P53 to P55 per kilo for raw.

The Philippines expects to produce 2.225 million MT of sugar for the new crop year which started this month and will end in August next year.  This is seven percent higher than this year’s 2.08 million MT production.

However, the 2017 output failed to reach SRA’s target of 2.1 million MT.