Foreign reserves last July likely breached historic level of $78B — BSP

Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said Wednesday that an upward revision is “most likely” for its yearend gross international reserves (GIR) forecast of $78 billion given that this level may have already been breached just last July.   “Our external payments position continues to benefit from large remittances, rising business process outsourcing (BPO earnings, and strong capital inflows,” the BSP chief said.   He revealed to reporters that the July GIR is expected to have risen to within the $78 billion to $79 billion range.   At this level, the foreign reserves make the country liquid enough to pay for 11 months worth of imports or six times its short term foreign debts should there be any serious international liquidity shocks to the economy. — ELR, GMA News