Manila, Feb. 6 -- Various government interventions under President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. have been crucial in the gradual stabilization of "extraordinary" spikes in rice prices in the country, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said Wednesday.

This came after the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported a -2.3 percent deflation in rice in January, a significant drop from 0.08 percent in December 2024.

In a press conference, DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel De Mesa said the spiking trend, which went beyond the administration's 4 percent target rice inflation from July 2023 to November 2024, has slowly been tamed.

"From this trend, iyong epekto ng (the effect of) tariff reduction beginning July, it caused dahan-dahan na ...