Silver lining

This morning Inquirer Money reports that the worst is probably over for the Philippine debt. While investors in Philippine debt papers are nervous of the possibility of a wider political turmoil, it was also reported that 4 out of 10 regional traders chose Philippine bonds among major Asian issuers.

The Philippine peso also climbed to a three-week high (P55.60 as of 18 July closing), attributed primarily to the strong inflows from overseas Filipino workers. It was also said that the weekend rally, “Gathering for Peace, Unity through the Rule of Law”, in support of the President also helped lift the peso.

Further, the Inquirer news reported that the latest data brought the balance-of-payment (BOP) to a surplus of $1.981 billion for the first half of the year compared to the $70 million for the same period last year. The BSP (Philippine Central Bank) also forecasts a BOP surplus this year of $852 million compared with a deficit of $280 million last year. Our other numbers are also good with May exports growth of 1.1% year-on-year and January to May exports growth of 4% year-on-year. Foreign portfolio investments, on the other hand, showed an inflow of $1.878 billion from January to July 9 from the $146.3 million for the same period last year.

It must be true that the Philippine economy is indeed resilient. Despite the good beating our economy seems to get from all the political uncertainty our country is faced with, some good news still manage to come our way. We must have been doing something right which may explain why the gods are still on our side.