The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) stopped short of saying that economy has entered stagflation, as some private economists have been saying since the government reported a 2.1 percent growth for the third quarter.

In an email late Wednesday, the BSP said that '' In the face of a difficult combination of elevated inflation and slowing economic growth, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) remains determined to fulfill our mandate of pursuing price stability conducive to sustained and balanced growth.''

Arsenio Balisacan, secretary of the Department of Economy, Planning and Development, said he will wait until the end of the year before saying if the country has entered the staglation stage.

Stagflation is an economic condition where it is characterized by low growth, high unemployment and high inflation. Nearly a week before the growth numbers were announced, inflation for October went up to 7.8 percent from 7.2 percent in September.

Unemployment reached 5.4 percent in September, which meant 2.86 million Filipinos had no job.

The BSP, which raised policy rates by 50 basis points recently, said: ''Since monetary policy is unable to control the direct inflationary effect of recent global supply shocks, it focuses on the second-round effects of such shocks. In the BSP's efforts to bring inflation down.''

Economist Jonathan Ravelas told Bilyonaryo News Channel that ''in terms of prices, I think we are now seeing it.''

Former Budget Secretary Florencio Abad also told Bilyonaryo that ''technically, the Philippines is in stagflaton.'' He echoed the statement of UP assistant economics professor JC Punongbayan that the Philippines is in stagflation.

However, ex Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas deputy governor Diwa Guingundo told Storycon that he believes the country is not in stagflation but nearly there.

The BSP said ''restoring price stability and safeguarding households' purchasing power are essential to rebuilding confidence and supporting a durable economic recovery.''

The BSP said it is '' carefully assessing the implications of the latest growth data for the inflation outlook.''

'' Future monetary policy decisions will continue to be guided by incoming data, particularly developments in inflation, inflation expectations, and economic activity.'' it said.

''Signs of improvement would include easing inflation, more stable inflation expectations, stronger business and consumer confidence, and a recovery in investment and employment. These would indicate that inflationary pressures are subsiding while economic activity is regaining momentum,'' the central bank said. PHS