MANILA – The Philippines maintained a comfortable level of foreign reserves in March despite a month-on-month decline, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported.
Initial data released Tuesday night showed that the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) settled at USD107.5 billion at the end of March, compared with USD113.3 billion in February.
The GIR includes foreign currency assets such as securities, foreign exchange holdings, and gold.
International reserves serve as financial protection against external shocks, helping ensure the country can pay for imports, meet foreign debt obligations, and maintain currency stability.
The BSP noted that the current reserve level still represents a strong external liquidity position. It is sufficient to cover about 7.1 months of imports and payments for services and primary income.
The reserve stock also equals nearly 3.9 times the Philippines’ short-term external debt based on residual maturity.
Economists generally consider a country’s reserves adequate if they can support at least three months of imports and external payment obligations.
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