GIR still above $100-B level, but dips in April T
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HE country’s Gross International Reserves (GIR) marked its seventh straight month at over $100 billion in April, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). This represented the longest $100-billion-level streak since the 22-month streak ended in June 2022. The country first recorded this GIR level in September 2020 with $100.44 billion. However, BSP data showed the country’s GIR reached $103.4 billion as of end-April 2024. This was 0.605 percent lower than the $104.1 billion end-March level. “The month-on-month decrease in the GIR level reflected mainly the National Government’s [NG] net foreign currency withdrawals from its deposits with the BSP to settle its foreign
currency debt obligations and pay for its various expenditures,” BSP said. The BSP’s reserve assets consist of foreign investments, gold, foreign exchange, reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and special drawing rights. Based on the April data, the largest was the 26.91-percent decline in foreign currency to $791.7 million in endApril from $1.08 billion in end-March this year. On a year-on-year basis, foreign currency declined 30.61 percent from the $1.14 billion posted in the endApril period of 2023. The data also showed gold holdings declined 2.62 percent to $10.255 billlion in end-April 2024, from the $10.532 billlion posted in end-March
this year. “The latest GIR level represents a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.7 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income,” BSP said. “Moreover, it is also about 5.9 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 3.6 times based on residual maturity,” it added. The data also showed the net international reserves decreased by $0.6 billion to $103.4 billion as of end-April 2024 from the end-March 2024 level of $104.0 billion. This refers to the difference between the BSP’s reserve assets (GIR) and reserve liabilities such as short-term foreign debt and credit and loans from the IMF.
The BSP explained that by convention, GIR is viewed to be adequate if it can finance at least three months’ worth of the country’s imports of goods and payments of services and primary income. Short-term debt based on residual maturity refers to outstanding external debt with original maturity of one year or less, plus principal payments on medium- and long-term loans of the public and private sectors falling due within the next 12 months. The level of GIR, as of a particular period, is considered adequate, if it provides at least 100-percent cover for payment of the country’s foreign liabilities, public and private, falling due within the immediate 12-month period. Cai U. Ordinario
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Thursday, May 9, 2024 Vol. 19 No. 205
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DRY SPELL CAUSES AGRI, FISHERIES 1-M JOB LOSS By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
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HE severe dry spell has caused the agriculture and fisheries sector to shed more than a million jobs in March 2024, according to the latest data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Based on the March Labor Force Statistics (LFS), the number of employed Filipinos increased by 572,000 to 49.15 million in 2024 from the 48.58 million posted in the same period of 2023. However, agriculture and forestry, as well as fishing and aquaculture, posted the largest declines in employment with a combined 1.33 million jobs lost in March 2024. “Among the most affected in terms of employment is the agriculture sector, including fisheries,” said National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa, partly in Filipino. “[This is really] related to planting, harvesting, growing paddy rice and vegetables. The report on the value of production of agriculture and fisheries has been released, and one sees from there that, in crops and fisheries, including also livestock, particularly hog farming, there has been a reduction in value of production. See “Agri,” A
POWERING UP PROGRESS Vivian S. Santos, Deputy Director General of Operations at the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza); Rosario, Cavite Vice Mayor Joanne Michelle “Bamm” Gonzales; Ireen Catane, Country President of Schneider Electric Philippines; and Rizalino Jose C. Torralba, District Collector of the Port of Manila, Bureau of Customs, grace the grand opening of Schneider Electric’s Smart Distribution Center in Cavite Export Zone. The energy management and automation company officially inaugurated its updated Cavite Smart Distribution Center, marking a significant investment of P86.5 million. Schneider Electric has enhanced the facility with cutting-edge Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies to support regional growth and global advancements driven by the energy transition and digitalization. NONIE REYES
FACTORY OUTPUT POSTS 3% Q1 farm output inches AVERAGE GROWTH IN Q1–PSA up 0.05% despite El Niño
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ESPITE the contraction in factory output in March 2024, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed a 3-percent average growth in manufacturing production in the first quarter of the year. Based on the latest Production Index and Net Sales Index or Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries data, the country’s Volume of Production Index (VoPI) contracted 0.8 percent in March 2024. However, PSA said VoPI grew 3 percent in the January to March period this year. The decline in March was the lowest
VoPI recorded this year while the 7.2-percent growth posted in February was the highest during the period. “The downtrend in the yearon-year growth rate of VoPI in March 2024 was primarily driven by the same top three industry divisions that contributed to the downturn in the annual growth rate of VaPI [Value of Production Index] during the period,” PSA said. PSA said these are the manufacture of food products; computer, electronic and optical products; and coke and refined Continued on A
By Ada Pelonia
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HE country’s farm output posted a slight gain in the first quarter despite the havoc wreaked by El Niño on local plantations, based on data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Wednesday. PSA data indicated that farm production inched up by 0.05 percent in terms of value using constant 2018 prices. The crops, livestock, and fisheries subsectors recorded declines in terms of value, according to PSA data. The poultry and fisheries subsectors prevented the performance of Philippine agriculture from falling into negative territory. “Interventions and assistance
provided by the government allowed the agriculture sector to fare better this time compared to periods in the past when we had El Nino,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in a statement. “The impact of reduced rainfall and hotter temperatures were evident in lower crops and fisheries production in the first quarter. If El Nino will persist through the second quarter, we’re cautiously optimistic that the interventions we have taken will allow the agriculture sector to mend and return better results between April and June,” he added. The value of agriculture and See “El Niño,” A
PESO EXCHANGE RATES US 57.2460 Q JAPAN 0.3703 Q UK 71.6205 Q HK 7.3197 Q SINGAPORE 42.2729 Q AUSTRALIA 37.7595 Q SAUDI ARABIA 15.2640 Q EU 61.5852 Q KOREA 0.0422 Q CHINA 7.9309 Source: BSP (May 8, 2024)