UPDATE 1-Philippine inflation eases to 4-month low in September

* CPI rises 2.3% y/y vs +2.4% in August
* Core inflation at 3.2% vs 3.1% in Aug
* Philippine economy snapshot: http://tmsnrt.rs/2nZqDWx

(Adds details, cbank comments, bullets)
By Neil Jerome Morales
MANILA, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Philippine inflation slowed to a
four-month low in September, reflecting weak domestic demand,
but the central bank said its policy-easing and
liquidity-enhancing measures were sufficient to support the
pandemic-hit economy.
The Consumer Price Index PHCPI=ECI rose 2.3% in September
from a year earlier, slightly slower than the 2.4% inflation in
August as price pressures eased on the heavily weighted food and
non-alcoholic beverage index, the Philippine Statistic Authority
said on Tuesday.
The headline figure was below the 2.4% median forecast in a
Reuters' poll, but within the central bank's forecast range of
1.8%-2.6% for the month.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and fuel
prices, was 3.2%, versus 3.1% in August PHCPXY=ECI .
Inflation in January-September averaged 2.5%, below the
mid-point of the official 2%-4% target range for the year.
It is likely to be around 2.4%-2.5% in the last three months
of the year, said chief statistician Dennis Mapa.
Economists largely expect consumer price pressures to stay
muted in the last quarter as pandemic restrictions are unlikely
to be fully lifted in a country with the highest tally of
coronavirus cases in Southeast Asia.
Despite tame inflation, however, some economists do not
expect further interest rate cuts for the rest of the year after
the central bank slashed rates by a total of 175 basis points
between February and June.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), which kept its
benchmark interest rate steady at a record-low 2.25% for a
second successive meeting on Thursday, has scaled down its
inflation forecasts for 2020 and the next two years.
"The significant monetary easing and liquidity enhancing
measures done by the BSP and the timely implementation of fiscal
measures...are seen to provide sufficient support to economic
recovery," BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said after the release
of the inflation data.