BY MARCHEL P. ESPINA
The Sugar Regulatory Administration said the country’s sugar output as of the second week of August remained at 3.54 percent.
The figure had been consistent since the third week of July, which increased by 0.55 percent from the previous week, it added.
In the latest supply and demand situation report of SRA, from September 1, 2019 to August 16, 2020, the total output of raw sugar was 2,145,693 metric tons from 2,072,351 MT in the same period the previous year.
The production is equal to 42.913 million 50-kilo bags in 2020 and 41.447 million last year.
The demand for raw sugar also improved by 1.40 percent, from 2.024 million MT in 2019 to 2.053 million MT this year.
Production of refined sugar increased by 2.87 percent, at 839,542 MT from 816,081 MT the previous year.
The SRA also said the output of molasses this year improved by 9.94 percent, from 1.026 million MT to 1.128 million MT.
Total sugarcane milled for the period also increased by 7.15 percent, from 21.744 million MT to 23.299 million MT.
The current sugar millgate price is P1,700 per 50-kilo bag, while the prevailing retail price of raw sugar in the market remains at P45 per kilo.
The sugar crop year starts every September and ends August the following year.*
