MANILA - Philippine inflation picked up pace in February to the fastest rate in 26 months, but the central bank said the spike should be viewed as temporary, signalling it would not be in a rush to reverse its accommodative monetary policy stance.

The Consumer Price Index rose 4.7% from a year earlier, against January's 4.2% increase, marking the second straight month that the headline figure was outside the official target of 2%-4%.

It matched the median forecast in a Reuters' poll and was within the central bank's 4.3%-5.1% forecast for the month.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, picked up to 3.5% versus January's 3.4%, the statistics agency said on Friday.

The inflation number reflects the impact of weather-related supply disruptions and African Swine Fever outbreaks on food prices, as well as base effects and costlier oil, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

"The overall balance of risks to future inflation continues to lean toward the downside owing mainly to the continued uncertainty caused by the pandemic on domestic and global economic activity," BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno told reporters.

He maintained that inflation will eventually return to the target range, but also said the BSP will be mindful of possible further upward pressures.

The BSP, which holds its next policy meeting on March 25, "will consider carefully recent price developments that could influence the outlook for inflation along with evidence of second-round effects", Diokno said, referring to current higher prices driving inflation expectations up.

The BSP has kept its policy rate at a record low of 2.0% for two consecutive meetings, following last year's cuts totalling 200 basis points.

Most economists do not expect the BSP to change its policy stance soon.

"(The BSP) will likely look beyond inflation that is being caused by some supply-side pressures. They want to nudge the reopening of the economy," Security Bank chief economist Robert Dan Roces told ANC news channel.

(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales, writing by Enrico Dela Cruz Editing by Ed Davies) ((enrico.delacruz@tr.com))