Q1 hot money inflows grow despite January, March dip By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
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LABORING FOR CHANGE Labor and militant organizations gathered in Morayta, Manila, and the Museong Pambata near the US Embassy on May 1, 2024, to commemorate Labor Day. They voiced demands for wage increases, opposed Charter Change, and resisted the phaseout of traditional jeepneys. Labor Day in the Philippines features lively parades, rallies, and festivities, signifying a national holiday with profound historical importance. It celebrates the invaluable contributions of Filipino workers, both locally and globally, to societal and economic advancement. Labor Day stories on A3 Nation and A5 News. NONIE REYES
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OT money inflows in the first quarter grew despite recording declines in January and March this year, according to the latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Data showed transactions on foreign investments registered with the BSP, through authorized agent banks, reached $4.19 billion in inflows and $3.81 billion in outflows. This led to a net inflow of $377.42 million in January to March 2024, a turnaround compared to the $328-million net outflows recorded in the same period last year. In March 2024, the country recorded net hot money outflows of $236.02 million, the highest since the 4328.19-million outflows recorded in October 2023. This was based
on the $1.6-billion gross outflows and $1.4-billion gross inflows for the month. This is a reversal from the $689-million net inflows recorded in February 2024. BSP said the $1.4-billion registered investments for the month are lower by $140 million or 9.1 percent compared to the $1.5 billion recorded in February 2024. During the month, the data showed 56.7 percent or $798 million of registered investments were in PSE-listed securities. Most “were investments made in: [a] banks; [b] holding firms; [c] property; [d] transportation services; and [e] food, beverage and tobacco], while the remaining 43.3 percent were in in Peso government securities [$610 million],” BSP said. “Investments for the month mostly came from the See “Q,” A
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ERC SUSPENDING WESM DURING GRID RED ALERT By Lenie Lectura @llectura & Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla
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HE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has moved to protect consumers from the spike in power rates by suspending the operations of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) in Luzon and Visayas whenever the red alert notice is issued by the system operator.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. promptly hailed the decision. “This aims to stop the rise in electricity rates during the calamity caused by El Niño,” the chief executive said in his speech during the Labor Day celebration in Malacañang. He said the measure is part of government interventions to keep steady the price of basic goods and services amid the ongoing economic impact of El Niño. The President noted the high temperatures brought about by El Niño have caused a surge in power consumption. During market suspension, the ERC said See “WESM,” A
FLYOVER GETS A ‘LIFT’ DPWH personnel inspect the southbound lane of the Edsa-Kamuning flyover on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. A portion of the flyover will be closed for six months during this rehabilitation, scheduled to reopen by October 25. Led by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), this crucial repair effort aims to strengthen the 32-year-old bridge, preparing it for potential earthquakes, including the theorized “Big One.” NONOY LACZA
RAMPED-UP HYBRID CARS USE TO BOOST ELECTRONICS: SEIPI
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HE use of hybrid cars in the country will open opportunities for the Electronics industry, according to the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation Inc. (Seipi). “In hybrids, you probably have over 90 percent of the components in electronics. So, yes, it does open opportunities,” Seipi President Danilo C. Lachica told reporters on the sidelines of GPCCI’s forum on Tuesday. Lachica said he’d rather go with hybrid first, considering that the country still has to put up the necessary infrastructure or enough charging stations for electric vehicles and “fast-charging” stations for commercial use. “I’d be nervous driving an EV from Manila to Baguio and running out in Tarlac, you know...of the charge, right? But it’s a good step. But eventually, EV would be the way to
go,” the Seipi president added. Lachica emphasized that if the government plans to roll out electric vehicles especially for commercial use, they should ensure that there would be sufficient fast-charging stations. “Now, you can’t convince the jeep drivers or even the bus drivers to wait 10 hours to charge an EV. We have to make sure that we have abundant fast charging stations for commercial use,” the Seipi chief stressed. In a separate interview, Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual told reporters earlier the Committee on Tariff and Related Matters (CTRM) will discuss the ongoing review on the potential expansion of Executive Order (EO) 12 to cover e-motorcycles and hybrid vehicles. See “Electronics,” A
No need to cut revenue goals, says Recto By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
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ITH a hefty task of collecting a record-high P4.3 trillion in revenues this year, Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said the tax collection of the Bureaus of Internal Revenue and of Custom, and their importance of hitting the numbers signals no need for a downward revision of revenue targets. “Our revenue collection today seems to be on target. So right now, no need to revise it yet. So far, we’re on target,” Recto told reporters. On Monday, the Department of Finance (DOF) said the national government’s borrowing plan was increased to P2.57 trillion in 2024, higher by 4.47 percent than
the P2.46-trillion target set by the Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC). Recto clarified to reporters that the government did not revise the borrowing plan but the DBCC’s GDP growth target, which was slashed to 6 to 7 percent for 2024 from 6.5 to 7.5 percent. “As a consequence of that, revenues will be less because of [lower] growth. Ergo, there’s a possibility of an increased borrowing,” Recto said. The Finance chief added that these would all depend on whether the government will be able to hit its revenue targets this year, which, Recto stressed, the economic team did not reduce. Recto explained that when DBCC’s GDP growth targets are too
high, then revenue targets are also expected to be higher. “If you fail to hit those [GDP] targets, you’ll fail to hit the revenue. Your deficit becomes higher. That’s why we wanted to put it more realistically—realistic GDP growth numbers,” Recto added. The bulk of the P4.3 trillion in revenues, or P3 trillion, will be raised by the BIR while the remaining P1 trillion will come from the BOC. “I’ll be seeing them soon within the month to discuss the revenue targets this year and all the way to 2028. But the most important is this year because we’re already funding the budget this year,” the Finance chief added. The BIR collected a total of P591.8 billion from January to
March this year, higher by 17.15 percent than the P505.2 billion it recorded in the same period in 2023. “If [the BIR] can continue with that, we shouldn’t be borrowing more. In fact, we should be borrowing less,” Recto said.
BOC collection MEANWHILE, the BOC generated P218.9 billion in the first quarter of 2024, up by 2.35 percent yearon-year from the P213.8 billion it posted in 2023. Recto said the government is banking on better tax administration for 2024 and the coming years, specifically collecting taxes based on transactions done through eSee “Recto,” A
PESO EXCHANGE RATES US 57.6970 Q JAPAN 0.3691 Q UK 72.4790 Q HK 7.3737 Q SINGAPORE 42.2317 Q AUSTRALIA 37.8839 Q SAUDI ARABIA 15.3838 Q EU 61.8570 Q KOREA 0.0420 Q CHINA 7.9857 Source: BSP (April 30, 2024)