PH FOREIGN RESERVES LUMIIT; $78.460-B NOONG 2018

NUMIPIS ang gross international reserves (GIR) ng bansa sa seven-year low noong  Disyembre 2018 dahil sa foreign exchange obligations ng gobyerno, ayon sa Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

Sa datos na ipinalabas ng BSP, ang GIR ay may kabuuang $78.460 billion hanggang noong katapussan ng Disyembre ng 2018, mula sa $81.569 billion sa kaparehong panahon noong 2017.

“The GIR is a measure of a country’s ability to settle import payments and service foreign debt,” paliwa-nag ng central bank.

Ang foreign reserves ay naitala sa $75.862 billion noong Nobyembre 2018, ang pinakamababa magmula nang mailista ito sa $75.302 billion noong 2011.

“The increase in reserves was partially tempered by payments made by the national government to service its foreign exchange obligations,” anang BSP.

Ang month-on-month increase ay bunga ng  inflows mula sa foreign exchange operations ng central bank, ng net foreign currency deposits ng  national government, at ng revaluation gains mula sa gold holdings ng BSP.

“The end-December 2018… GIR continues to serve as ample external liquidity buffer and is equivalent to 6.9 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income,” sabi pa ng central bank.

“It is also equivalent to 5.8 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 4 times based on residual maturity,” dagdag pa ng BSP.

Samantala, ang net international reserves— ang diperensiya sa pagitan ng GIR at ng short-term liabilities— ay lumobo sa  $78.44 billion hanggang  end-December 2018 mula sa $75.66 billion hanggang end-November 2018.