Rising prices of goods and calls for salary increases remain the top concerns of many Filipinos, according to a study by OCTA Research.
This was observed even before the impact of the Middle East crisis.
In its Tugon ng Masa survey conducted from March 19 to 25, 45% of respondents identified inflation as the country’s leading problem.
This was followed by wage increase at 33%, graft and corruption in government at 26%, and access to affordable food at 24%.
The study noted that the results serve as a pre-shock baseline, as they were gathered before the rise in fuel, transportation, and other costs.
Meanwhile, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has released its inflation forecast for April.
According to the central bank, inflation may range between 5.6% and 6.4%, faster than the 4.1% recorded in March.