Manila, March 4 -- The maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) for rice may drop further with the continuous decline of global rice prices and the strengthening of the peso, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA).

"Ang plano namin kung tuluy-tuloy ang trend na ito, by March 31, baka ibaba namin sa PHP45 ang kilo ng (Our plan is, if this trend continues, by March 31, we might drop it to PHP45 per kilo the price of) imported rice, 5 percent broken," DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in an interview late Monday afternoon.

Tiu Laurel made the statement as the peso strengthened against the dollar at PHP57 level, stronger than the PHP59-level.

The price of 5 percent broken rice from India was set at USD425.4 per metric ton (M...