Economic team bullish on peso for rest of year By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
T
THE WORLD ›› A11
DIPLOMATS FLEE SUDAN FIGHTING AS CITIZENS STRUGGLE TO ESCAPE
ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDS
2006 National Newspaper of the Year 2011 National Newspaper of the Year 2013 Business Newspaper of the Year 2017 Business Newspaper of the Year 2019 Business Newspaper of the Year 2021 Pro Patria Award PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY 2018 Data Champion
w
HE economic team remains “very bullish” that the peso will continue to strengthen against the dollar in the coming months. In a Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) briefing on Monday, the economic team said the peso is expected to average P53 to P57 to the dollar this year until the President ends his term in 2028. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)
Deputy Governor Francisco Dakila Jr. said the peso is already trading below the P58 to the dollar average in the third quarter of last year, a trend expected to continue this year. “It’s very difficult to give a forecast but I will say that there are factors that argue that the peso is going to be broadly stable over the medium term,” Dakila said during the briefing. Data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) showed the peso has improved its performance against the US dollar and
closed at P55.77 on Monday. The data showed the peso traded at a low of P55.75 and a high of P56.01 to the dollar. At the start of the trading day, the peso opened at P55.95, slightly lower than the P56.02 close last Thursday. Dakila said government’s optimism that the performance of the peso will improve stems from the expected increase in services exports, which he explained is a significant source of dollars for the Philippines. Another is tourism revenue, which Dakila said, is one of the sectors of
the economy that is also expected to see robust growth this year. Tourism is also among the top dollar-earning industries. “We’re actually very bullish for this year. We’re expecting about an 80-percent increase in receipts from tourism. Also, Overseas Filipino remittances are expected to be stable at about 3 percent growth this year and BPO receipts are expected to grow by about 9 percent so those are structural sources of foreign exchange,” Dakila explained. See “Economic team,” A2
BusinessMirror
n
Tuesday, April 25, 2023 Vol. 18 No. 190
EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS
BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR
(2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021) DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 22 pages |
DBCC: ‘23 GROWTH GOAL STAYS, INFLATION A RISK
BATTERY SWAPS Horace Luke (left), the CEO and founder of Gogoro, a Taiwan-based company that specializes in battery swapping ecosystems for electric scooters, demonstrates the features and capabilities of their smart scooters, batteries, and swapping stations to Ayala Corp. Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala and Globe’s President and CEO Ernest Lawrence Cu during the launch on Monday, April 24, 2023, in BGC, Taguig City. Story in Companies, B1. NONIE REYES
T
By Raadee S. Sausa
HE Philippine economic team has maintained its growth targets for 2023 at 6.0 percent to 7.0 percent while revising macroeconomic assumptions to reflect higher inflation and easing global oil price trends, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) secretary said on Monday.
“The average inflation rate assumption for 2023 is increased to 5.0 percent to 7.0 percent from the previous assumption of 2.5 percent to 4.5 percent given the persisting high prices of food, energy and transport costs,” Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, who chairs the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), said. “We maintained our growth targets at 6.0 percent to 7.0 percent for 2023 and 6.5 percent to 8.0 percent for 2024 to 2028 in consideration of the risks posed by geopolitical and trade tensions, possible global economic slowdown, as well as weather disturbances in the country,” Pangandaman said. The Philippine economy grew by 7.6 percent in 2022, outperforming the DBCC’s growth target of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent. “This high-growth performance is projected to continue until 2028, aligned with the Medium-Term Fis-
cal Framework,” Pangandaman said as the 184th DBCC Joint Statement was issued. Moreover, in line with the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028, the government will focus on modernizing agriculture, expanding agri-business, encouraging private sector participation in infrastructure development, promoting digital transformation, and enhancing the competitiveness of local industries, according to her. By implementing the reforms and strategies already outlined in the PDP 2023-2028, Filipinos can expect a more robust Philippine economy with a single-digit poverty level.
Assumptions revised
MEANWHILE, the committee also approved the revisions to the macroeconomic assumptions based on emerging data.
PBBM: TALKS WITH BIDEN WILL TACKLE DEFENSE, CLIMATE By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
P
RESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said he will be discussing the “evolution” of the country’s defense agreements and climate change initiatives with United States President Joe Biden during their meeting next month. In his interview with broadcaster and former Social Welfare Secretary Erwin T. Tulfo on Monday, Marcos said among the top issues he will raise in the meeting will be updating the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) with the US. The MDT allows the Philippines and the US to provide support to each other if either country is attacked by a third party. Meanwhile, the VFA allows US troops to operate within the country’s territories. Marcos said both agreements should be “evolved” to take into account the brewing international tensions in the South China Sea, Taiwan and North Korea. “What can we do to reduce rhetoric [in the accords] because the exchange of words [on the issues] are now becoming more
serious, that is why we are now worried by them,” Marcos said. In December, the President announced there is an ongoing review of the MDT to rationalize its provisions, particularly on the conduct of joint exercises, and the use of the country’s bases by US forces under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). The result of the review was scheduled to be completed early this year. Marcos is also eyeing how the country can access the “green bonds” from the US, which can be used for local climatechange mitigation measures. “This means they will give funds to help fix [climate change issues]. For example, relocation for no-build zones,” Marcos explained. The additional funding, he said, can boost efforts to address the effects of climate change. Aside from military issues and climate change, Marcos said other matters which may be tackled in his talk with Biden are economic issues as well as tourism and healthcare. The bilateral meeting between Marcos and Biden will be held at the White House in Washington D.C. on May 1, 2023.
PHL among top recipients of ADB funding in region
T
HE Philippines is among the top recipients of loan and grant financing from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) across the region. In its Annual Report for 2022, ADB data showed it committed $2.995 billion to the Philippines in 2022, making the country the 5th largest recipient of sover-
eign, non-sovereign loans and grants. A DB committed $20.5 billion from its ow n resources in 2022 to help A sia and the Pacific continue its recover y from the Cov id-19 pandemic despite fresh economic headw inds and cr ises. See “PHL,” A2
See “DBCC,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 56.2780 n JAPAN 0.4199 n UK 70.0267 n HK 7.1716 n CHINA 8.1645 n SINGAPORE 42.1938 n AUSTRALIA 37.6725 n EU 61.8495 n KOREA 0.0423 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.0055 Source: BSP (April 24, 2023)