Bangko Sentral: PHL int'l reserves up to $81B in July

The Philippines registered $81 billion in gross international reserves as of end-July, reflecting a $300-million increase from $80.7 billion in June, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Thursday.
 
In an e-mailed statement, Bangko Sentral Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said higher reserves were mainly because of the net foreign currency deposits by the Treasurer of the Philippines which included proceeds of project and program loans from multilateral and bilateral institutions, foreign exchange operations of the BSP, and income from the BSP’s investments abroad.
 
Inflows were partially offset by payments for maturing foreign exchange obligations of the National Government and revaluation adjustments on the BSP’s gold holdings.
 
Tetangco said the GIR remains ample to cover 11 months worth of imports of goods and payments of services and income.
 
“It is also equivalent to 7.7 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 5.7 times based on residual maturity,” he said.

The GIR is expected to stay at the $80 billion level for the rest of the year given the portfolio outflows due to the geopolitical tensions overseas, Bank of the Philippine Islands economist Nicholas Mapa said in a phone interview.

"We still have ample GIR and it always pays to have that especially when global markets are facing volatility brought about by the geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and Israel," he said.

For the year, the BSP has projects the GIR to reach $87 billion this year from $84 billion last year. — JDS, GMA News