THE NATIONAL rice inventory fell 7.8% year on year to 2.40 million metric tons (MT) in June, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.

In its Rice and Corn stocks inventory report, the PSA said the year-earlier inventory level was 2.60 million MT. May total 2.80 million MT.

In June, the PSA said rice stocks held by households rose 19.8% year on year to 1.26 million MT while inventory held by commercial warehouses fell 10.7% to 891.40 thousand MT.

Meanwhile, the National Food Authority (NFA) inventories fell 54.9% to 248.33 thousand MT.

Compared to the previous month, the PSA said the national rice inventory fell 14.3%, with household stocks down 17.4%, commercial warehouse holdings falling 6.8%, and NFA depositories declining 22%.

“Of the month’s total rice stocks, 52.4% were in the households, 37.2% were in commercial warehouses, and 10.4% in NFA depositories,” the PSA said.

Meanwhile, corn stocks in June rose 5.3% year on year to 905.52 thousand MT.

Corn stocks held by households rose 20% to 96 thousand MT while the inventories of commercial warehouses rose 3.8% to 809.53 thousand MT.

NFA held no corn stocks for the month.

Month on month, the country’s corn stocks in households fell 38.9% while holdings of commercial warehouses rose 18.5%.

“About 89.4% of this month’s inventory were in commercial warehouses and the remaining 10.6% were in the households,” the PSA said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave