MANILA - The Philippines' foreign exchange reserves grew last month, allowing the country to pay for nearly a year's worth of imported goods and services, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said today.
In a statement, the BSP said the country's gross international reserves (GIR) climbed to $83 billion at end-September from $82.9 billion at end-August. Compared with a year ago, the end-September GIR was $1 billion higher.
Alternatively, the country's end-September GIR would allow it to pay 8.7 times over its short-term foreign debt based on original maturity, or 5.7 times over the same obligations based on residual maturity. Residual maturity includes debt payments on long-term obligations falling due within the next 12 months.
An ample GIR helps prop up the peso and keep domestic inflation at bay. Inflation averaged 2.8 percent in the first nine months of the year, or well below the lower-end of the BSP's full-year target range of 3-5 percent.
source: interaksyon.com
