Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube
Home Blog Page 12073

Dry run for Boracay re-opening set for Oct. 15; only 1,000 rooms allowed for occupancy

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said that it will be conducting a dry run on Boracay a week before the island formally opens on Oct . 26.
Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu in a press briefing on Thursday, Aug. 23, said that some 1,000 rooms will be opened on the first day of the dry run, which will begin on Oct. 15. Another 1,000 will be added by the second day until the island’s operations reach “full blast” by Oct. 26.
The dry run will also be open to tourists. Mr. Cimatu however said that this would depend on the Department of Tourism as it would decide, which hotels will be allowed to have some of its rooms open for customers.
Despite this, the government will still limit the number of hotel rooms in the island, which will be based on the carrying capacity study which is set to be released by Saturday, Aug. 25.
The study will also be used as basis for the Boracay Interagency Taskforce to draft policies for the island. — Anna Gabriela A. Mogato

Deadline for submitting foreign borrowings plan set for next month — BSP

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has given the government as well as private firms until next month to submit their offshore borrowing plans for 2019.
In a public advisory, the BSP announced that all public and private entities must submit their foreign borrowings plan to the monetary authority until Sept. 30.

Man who pretended to be IC commissioner charged with estafa

The Insurance Commission (IC) said an individual who was claiming to be Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa was charged with estafa.
In a statement sent to reporters on Thursday, Aug. 23, the IC said a victim filed a case before the Makati City Prosecutor’s Office against a certain Jordan Alao Villanueva for defrauding him P700,000.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the victim who received a call from Mr. Villanueva claiming to be Mr. Funa.
According to the complainant, Mr. Villanueva was able to convince him that he was the commissioner due to Mr. Villanueva’s “intimate knowledge of the insurance agency.”
The accused extorted a total of P700,000, which was deposited in a bank account under his name sometime in August 2017, the victim added.
The complainant later found out from Mr. Funa that the number as well as the bank account do not belong to the commissioner. — Karl Angelo N. Vidal

Asian markets down as China, US hold talks but impose tariffs

Hong Kong — Asia’s major markets were mostly down Thursday as China and the US exchanged fresh tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars of goods while the two sides held talks on their long-running trade dispute.
Washington imposed levies on $16 billion of imports, sparking an immediate retaliation in kind from Beijing, which said it “firmly opposes the tariffs and has no choice but to continue to make the necessary counter-attacks”.
It also said the US was “clearly suspected” of violating World Trade Organization rules and would file a lawsuit with the group.
The measures are the second after the world’s top two economies swapped tariffs on $34 billion of goods in July.
They come as officials from each side hold their first talks since June aimed at easing a row that has dragged on equities for months. However, observers are cautious about what progress they will make initially.
Most stock markets were down in Asia.
While Tokyo edged up 0.2 percent in the afternoon, at the break Hong Kong was 0.7 percent down and Shanghai lost 0.3 percent. Seoul slipped 0.1 percent but Singapore surged 1.5 percent, after a one-day holiday.
Sydney fell 0.2 percent — and the local dollar shed 0.8 percent — as Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull fights for his political life following a leadership challenge.
The S&P/ASX 200 was also being dragged by a near five percent plunge in Qantas as a jump in the airline’s profits was offset by its worries about rising fuel costs.
Dollar picks up
Investors are keeping tabs on developments in Washington after Trump’s former personal adviser admitted a series of charges including illegal use of election funds, while his ex-campaign manager was convicted on several counts including bank and tax fraud.
On currency markets the dollar sprang back to life against the yen, pound and euro after this week’s travails, with Federal Reserve minutes signalling it is ready to lift rates again as the economy continues to improve.
“Many participants suggested that if incoming data continued to support their current economic outlook, it would likely soon be appropriate to take another step,” the minutes said.
The greenback had taken a hit this week from Donald Trump’s comments criticizing the central bank’s rate increases and accusing it of not backing his economic plan.
However, the Fed’s policy committee pointed to “ongoing trade disagreements and proposed trade measures as an important source of uncertainty and risks”.
In addition, most members said “an escalation in international trade disputes was a potentially consequential downside risk for real activity”.
Attention now turns to this week’s annual central bankers’ symposium at Jackson Hole in Wyoming, with investors hoping for some idea about governors’ plans in light of the China-US trade row. — AFP

National government fiscal performance (July 2018)

THE GOVERNMENT’s fiscal deficit grew in July and in the first seven months, as spending increased faster than revenues, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said on Wednesday. Read the full story.

National government fiscal performance (July 2018)

Spending surge boosts budget gap

By Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan
Reporter
THE GOVERNMENT’s fiscal deficit grew in July and in the first seven months, as spending increased faster than revenues, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said on Wednesday.
The government posted an P86.4-billion fiscal deficit last month, 71% more than the P50.5 billion recorded in July last year.
Overall revenues grew 24% year-on-year to P241.7 billion from P194.6 billion.
Of this amount, tax revenues accounted for P217.8 billion, a 25% increase from last year’s P174.7 billion.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) collected P164 billion last month, 19% more than P138.1 billion a year ago, while the Bureau of Customs (BoC) raked in P52.1 billion, 49% more than the year-ago P35 billion.
In its statement, the Treasury attributed the collection boost to “strong enforcement and revenue enhancement measures, coupled with the weaker peso and higher oil price.”
Other offices’ tax take totaled some P1.7 billion, six percent more than the P1.6 billion collected the past year.
Non-tax revenues accounted for nearly a tenth of overall revenues at P23.9 billion, which grew 20% from P20 billion in July 2017.
The BTr’s collections amounted to P11.8 billion, up 39% from P8.5 billion while other offices’ revenues were P12.2 billion, up six percent from P11.5 billion. The Treasury said this was due to “higher remittance of dividends on shares of stocks held by the government and NG (national government) share in PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.) income and MIAA (Manila International Airport Authority) profits.”
STATE SPENDING SURGES
Government spending jumped 34% to P328.1 billion in July — “the highest nominal (monthly) spending for the year” — from P245.1 billion a year ago.
Of that amount, interest payments (IP) accounted for P44.8 billion — 13.7% of total spending in July — steady from P44.6 billion the past year. “The lower domestic IP on account of debt that matured last year was offset by the increase in foreign payments from new bonds issued in Feb 2018 and in part due to the depreciation of the peso,” the Treasury explained.
Other disbursements — which include infrastructure and other capital outlays — surged 41% to P283.3 billion in July from P200.5 billion a year ago.
YEAR-TO-DATE
For the January-July period, the government posted a P279.4-billion deficit, 36% bigger than the P205 billion recorded in 2017’s first seven months.
Revenues grew 21% to P1.652 trillion as of July from P1.372 trillion in 2017’s comparative seven months.
Tax collections contributed P1.473 trillion to the total, 18% more than the year-ago P1.244 trillion.
The BIR collected P1.129 trillion, 14% more than the year-ago P986.1 billion, while the BoC raked in P331.5 billion, reflecting a 35% surge from P245.3 billion in the same comparative seven-month period.
Other offices collected some P12.5 billion in tax revenues, edging up two percent from P12.2 billion.
Non-tax revenues surged 41% to P179.8 billion in the first seven months of the year from P127.4 billion in 2017’s comparable period.
The Treasury contributed P77.9 billion of that amount, 27% more than P61.2 billion the past year, while other offices raked in P101.9 billion, 54% up from P66.2 billion a year ago.
State spending in the same comparative seven-month periods grew 23% to P1.932 trillion from P1.576 trillion.
Interest payments accounted for about a tenth of the overall expenditures at P210.4 billion as of July, seven percent more than the year-ago P196.2 billion.
Other disbursements contributed P1.721 trillion, jumping 25% from P1.38 trillion last year.
Sought for comment, UnionBank of the Philippines Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion noted in an e-mail: “In general, these are all so far at comfortable levels, as the government continues to spend and tax to help the economy grow better and higher in the longer-run. Continued higher collections will bode well in the short- to medium-terms.’
“Both BIR and BoC should continue to deliver and push smashing collection goals. This direction of higher collection for the revenue collecting government agencies should be sustained at all cost, and a strong revenue collection growth should always be positive for the growing economy.”
National government fiscal performance (July 2018)

Banks’ bad debts grow slightly as of end-June

BAD DEBTS held by big banks increased slightly as of end-June, even as they accounted for a smaller share of total loans amid a growing portfolio, according to latest available central bank data.
Non-performing loans (NPLs) held by universal and commercial banks totalled P110.606 billion as of June, 9.5% more than the P101.006 billion in problem debts incurred the past year.
NPLs refer to loans left unpaid at least 30 days past due date. These are considered risky assets given a slim chance that borrowers concerned will settle their debt, resulting in turn in losses for the lender.
Despite this, the increase of soured debts was actually slower than the 17.5% increase in total lending, as banks handed out a cumulative P8.331 trillion in credit to their clients. This compares to a P7.09-trillion loan book in 2017’s first semester, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Compared to total loans, the share of NPLs dipped to 1.33%, smaller than the 1.34% ratio recorded in May and the 1.42% share in June 2017. This meant that the stash of problem debts became more manageable for lenders.
The banks also beefed up defenses against possible credit losses amid brisk lending. They set aside P158.846 billion to cover for potential loan losses, 14% more than the P139.28 billion allotted for this purpose a year ago.
This is more than enough to cover NPLs, meaning banks concerned will remain on solid footing even if these problem loans are written off.
Non-performing assets held by banks steadied at P76.217 billion. This includes the value of real property and other items seized from clients for failing to pay their debt.
Banks also remained fairly liquid as deposits surged 11% to P11.019 trillion, enough to cover total loans.
The BSP monitors NPL ratios of banks and other financial firms in order to monitor asset quality and preserve the soundness of the financial system.
RELIEF
In a related development, the central bank also announced regulatory relief for banks and financial firms affected by typhoon Josie. The typhoon struck parts of the country in July, aggravating monsoon rains.
In a statement, the BSP said it has approved the grant of regulatory and rediscounting relief to banks based in towns in Ilocos, the Cordillera Administrative Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa and Western Visayas.
For Metro Manila, banks located in Malabon, Marikina, Parañaque, Pasig, Quezon City and Valenzuela will also be given the option to avail themselves of relief measures as they recover from the typhoon’s wrath.
Thrift, rural and cooperative banks are allowed to exclude outstanding loans from borrowers in the covered areas in computing their past due ratios, provided that such borrowings are restructured or given relief.
The BSP will not penalize banks in the covered provinces even if their reserves fall short of requirement.
Those under rehabilitation may pause in settling their monthly dues with the BSP.
No fines will be imposed on such banks for delayed submission of regulatory reports to the BSP.
All banks located in the affected areas may likewise extend financial aid to their officers and employees, even beyond the set of fringe benefits approved by the BSP for each firm.
The central bank extends relief to banks and quasi-banks following natural calamities and disasters which disrupt their day-to-day operations.
The BSP announced a set of relief measures for banks in war-torn Marawi City back in January. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez

Malaysia shelving $22-B China-backed projects

BEIJING — Malaysia will shelve three China-backed projects worth a total $22 billion until the debt-laden Southeast Asian nation can afford to pay for them, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said Tuesday during a visit to Beijing.
The projects include a railway connecting Malaysia’s east coast to southern Thailand and Kuala Lumpur, and two gas pipelines.
“I explained to (the Chinese leaders) why we can’t have the ECRL (East Coast Rail Link),” Mr. Mahathir told Malaysian reporters at the end of his five-day visit, saying the project “will be deferred until such time when we can afford (it)”.
“It’s about borrowing too much money, which we cannot afford, we cannot repay, and also because we don’t need those projects for Malaysia at this moment… our problem now is how to solve our financial deficit.”
Mr. Mahathir is trying to reduce Malaysia’s national debt, which has ballooned to some $250 billion.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang acknowledged that “any cooperation between the two countries will inevitably lead to problems of one kind or another.”
“We take a long-term view of the relationship between our two countries and will resolve the issue through dialogue and negotiation,” Mr. Lu told a regular press briefing.
After meeting Premier Li Keqiang on Monday, Mr. Mahathir said he believed China would help Malaysia resolve its fiscal problems.
The Malaysian leader also warned against “a new version of colonialism happening because poor countries are unable to compete with rich countries just in terms of open free trade”.
The $20-billion rail project was given to China’s largest engineering firm, the China Communications Construction Co., and mostly financed by a loan from the Export-Import Bank of China.
Malaysia’s finance ministry said in July that 88% of the cost of the two gas pipelines worth 9.4 billion ringgit ($2.32 billion) had been paid to their Chinese contractor despite only 13% of the work being completed.
One pipeline is in Malaysia’s Sabah state on Borneo island and the other runs from Malacca in peninsular Malaysia to the northern state of Kedah.
“We do not find the need for… (the pipeline projects),” Mr. Mahathir said. “It costs too much money. And we have to cancel or defer it to a later stage.”
In May, Mr. Mahathir shelved separate plans to build a high-speed railway between Singapore and Malaysia which had been agreed upon several years ago, saying it was too costly.
Despite the threat to revise China-linked contracts, Mr. Mahathir sought to strengthen business ties with Beijing during the trip.
China is the top trading partner of Malaysia, which is home to a substantial ethnic Chinese minority.
Relations were warm under the previous government of Prime Minister Najib Razak, and Chinese investment in the country surged as Beijing signed deals for major construction and other infrastructure projects.
The projects shelved by Mr. Mahathir are part of China’s ambitious Belt and Road initiative, an international trade infrastructure program aimed at reviving old Silk Road routes across the globe.
China’s financial largesse has raised concerns over the vulnerability of poorer nations to such massive debt.
Last year, Sri Lanka was forced to hand over majority control of its Hambantota port to China after failing to repay its loans. — AFP

Property firms developing ‘student-friendly’ condos

FEDERAL LAND, INC. is developing Quantum Residences along Taft Avenue in Manila. — WWW.FEDERAL-LAND.COM

MORE REAL estate companies are developing residential condominiums near educational institutions, as they see growing demand for quality housing for students.
DMCI Homes, Inc. will be launching a P2.8-billion condominium near the St. Scholastica’s College in Malate, Manila in the second half of this year.
“May bago kaming format. Karamihan kasi ng ginagawa namin designed for the family, ngayon ito designed for students (We have a new format. Most of what we do are designed for the family, but now this is designed for students),” DMCI Homes Chairman Isidro A. Consunji said during an Aug. 13 briefing.
DMCI Homes President Alfredo R. Austria said the new project will be launched within two to three months.
“This is a dormitory designed for family and students… Para siyang condominium na i-bebenta sa property buyers pero ang features niya ay sa dormitory (It’s like a condominium that we sell to property buyers but the features are like that of a dormitory). We’re developing at a lower price point,” he said during the same briefing.
Mr. Austria said the Malate condominium will stand 30 storeys tall with unit sizes starting at 24 square meters each and prices starting at P3 million.
The new project is part of the P40 billion worth of projects DMCI Homes targets to launch this year.
The Consunji-led property company also plans to unveil a 40-storey building in Matina, Davao City within the second half. The residential condominium will be a joint venture partnership with the developer of New City Commercial Corp. (NCCC) Mall.
Meanwhile, the property unit of GT Capital Holdings, Inc. also launched the first tower of Quantum Residences along Taft Avenue, Manila this month.
Federal Land, Inc.’s new project is located near several schools such as the De La Salle University, De La Salle College of Saint Benilde, St. Scholastica’s College, Philippine Women’s University, and Arellano University.
“The dormitory is for sale. It’s used as a dormitory, but it’s actually units for sale that’s designed for students. That will mostly be studio types,” GT Capital President Carmelo Maria Luza Bautista told reporters after a media briefing in Makati last Aug. 13.
Mr. Bautista said the company will launch another tower for Quantum Residences during the second half of the year, noting that 35% of units in the first tower were sold within a month after its launch.
Quantum Residences will consist of three towers with 35 floors each standing on a single podium. The first five floors are the podium levels, while the remaining 30 floors will house the residential units. The entire project stands on a 5,960-sq.m. property.
Unit sizes range from 21.5 sq.m. for studio units, 30.5 sq.m. for a one-bedroom unit with balcony, and 49 sq.m. for a two-bedroom unit.
Amenities in the Quantum Residences include a hobby room, fitness gym, conference room, study lounge, function room, and game room. — Arra B. Francia

SEC approves Globe’s cell tower company

THE SECURITIES and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the incorporation of Globe Telecom, Inc.’s new company that would build cellular towers, the telecommunications giant said on Wednesday.
In a disclosure to the stock exchange, Globe said it received the SEC’s approval on the incorporation of GTowers, Inc. on Aug. 20.
“The establishment of a tower company will help speed up the building and deployment of cellular towers in the country,” the company said.
In July, Globe said it will incorporate a separate tower holding company. After securing SEC approval, the company said it will begin divesting all or some of its tower assets.
Globe earlier said it was in talks with certain parties to form an independent tower company to help speed up the building and deployment of cellular towers.
However, Globe President and Chief Executive Officer Ernest L. Cu told reporters last month it has yet to come up with an agreement with these parties.
“The companies themselves are evaluating what the model will be. I guess paramount in their minds is whether a single tenant or the risk of having only one tenant on the tower company will be worth it for them,” he said.
Mr. Cu has said incorporating a separate tower holding company would “monetize assets for capex (capital expenditure) use and help maintain our consistent dividend policy.”
He noted this would also support the government’s initiative to find a third major player in the telco industry, as Globe plans to lease its towers.
Rival PLDT, Inc. said late last month that it is open to sharing towers should they be approached, but under some conditions.
“Obviously somebody has to step up and say, ‘Here’s a tower, you can share.’ And it has to be at an operating cost that is lower than our operating cost today, to make sense,” PLDT Chief Corporate Services Officer Ray C. Espinosa told reporters in late July.
Under their franchise, Globe and PLDT are allowed to build their own cellular towers for exclusive use.
But the government is pushing the companies to consider sharing their towers because of its economic benefits. Last month, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) received a P100-billion proposal from local company ISOC Infrastructures, Inc. to build 25,000 common towers over a seven-year period.
DICT Acting Secretary Eliseo M. Rio, Jr. said then they are open to accommodating up to two independent tower companies.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Denise A. Valdez

Happy birds, happy life

IF IT’S really true that you become what you absorb from this world, will eating a happy bird make you happy as well?
It seems true for Tina Morados-Papillon, the co-founder of Pamora Farm Inc.
During a luncheon at the Peninsula Manila on Aug. 20, Ms. Morados-Papillon’s laughter rang out through the room. Citing the unsanitary conditions at commercial chicken farms, she said that no poultry raisers eat their own chickens, but “I eat my own chicken,” she told BusinessWorld. “Kung hindi niyo bilhin, eh okay, kakainin ko na lang (If you don’t buy it, that is OK, I’ll eat it myself).”
The dancer-builder duo of Ms. Morados-Papillon and her husband, Gerard, established the farm in 2000 up in Abra. The pair specialize in free-range chickens, which means that the birds are given room to roam and lead their natural lives for about 80 days, as opposed to the 30 days imposed by big poultry farms. And while Philippine National Standards (PNS) for organic poultry requires a minimum of 70 days for the chickens to grow. Pamora follows the French Label Rouge standards and their Premium chicken (1 to 1.850 kg) lives for a minimum of 81 days, sometimes up to 100.
The bigger poultry farms coop up their chickens in small houses, and rush along their growth using antibiotics and hormones, according to Ms. Morados-Papillon.
The tight housing conditions, according to her, suffocate the chickens with nitrogen gas and bacteria from their own manure, which is why the chickens need antibiotics, she said. On labels in veterinary drugs, it says that the antibiotics should be expelled by the birds after about seven days. Breeders don’t wait for this period, according to Ms. Morados-Papillon, because it’s not really good for business. Thus the antibiotics remaining in the chicken flesh get absorbed by the human body, and lord knows what that will cause (hint: antibiotic resistance is one).
“With Pamora free-range chicken, you will eat 100% chicken. No hormones, no antibiotics, no chemicals,” Ms. Morados-Papillon was quoted as saying in a press release.
All right, so her birds are healthy, and eating healthy birds makes for a healthy human. But does the chicken become more flavorful, thus adding to the pleasure of the human consuming it? Well, since the birds are allowed to age naturally, they develop more flavor, she said. Comparing commercial birds to hers, she said, “Actually bland. Wala silang lasa (they don’t taste like anything). That’s why you need broth cubes.” The freedom of movement also apparently gives them more musculature, contributing to a better bite. Plus, Ms. Morados-Papillon feeds the birds a concoction of herbs and spices, all fermented in lambanog (coconut liquor) or gin. This serves as their natural antibiotic, but, in jest, she said, “Buhay pa, marinated na. (They’re already marinated while alive).”
Some studies show that an animal that has been stressed prior to slaughter yields worse meat, which Ms. Morados-Papillon says is true, based on her experience. Her chicken-dressing plant is located within the farm, because several years ago, her chickens were once dressed outside the farm. The birds were slaughtered after a four-hour drive in a cramped truck. A client then complained that the chicken tasted different, and the texture of the meat had changed.
Pamora is the only National Meat Inspection Services accredited “AA” Poultry Dressing Plant in the Cordillera region and the only dressing plant in the Philippines that caters exclusively to free-range chickens, using air-dry chilling process that is compliant with the EU standards on poultry dressing facilities, according to the press release.
So ideally, if you choose to live a life that treats you well, and having just a small number of bad days — maybe eating a chicken from Pamora, a chicken that has had one bad day (the day of its slaughter) will boost your karma. In a mixture of English and Tagalog, Ms. Morados-Papillon said, “For me, I know that I treated them well before I killed them.”
Right now, she services clients like Sagana Restaurant, James & Daughters by Le Jardin, The Peninsula Manila Hotel, City Of Dreams, Novotel Manila, Element Boutique Hotel, Marriott Hotel, and Makati Shangri-La Hotel. Her birds are available in Santis, Terry’s Bistro, and other specialty shops in the country. There is also a Pamora stall at the Ayala Alabang Village Saturday Market, and the chicken products can be ordered online through gerald.ph and honestbee.ph.
Pamora’s product line includes whole dressed chicken in different sizes, choice cuts, eggs, chicken burger, chicken nuggets, and chicken tocino. Pamora also sells paté which are creations of Gerard Papillon using recipes from his grandmother. — Joseph L. Garcia

Yields on term deposits rise on strong demand

peso remittance
TERM DEPOSIT yields rose on the back of strong liquidity in the market. — PHILSTAR/KRIZ JOHN ROSALES

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Senior Reporter
YIELDS ON term deposits continued to inch higher this week amid robust demand as banks continue to sit on piles of excess cash.
Banks offered to place as much as P106.739 billion under the term deposit facility (TDF) of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) yesterday. This is well above the P100 billion placed on the auction block, but posted a marked decline from the P147.79 billion tenders received a week ago.
Demand for the short-term papers softened as the markets have absorbed the news of an aggressive rate hike from the Monetary Board during their Aug. 9 policy meeting.
Still, players took advantage and sought higher rates, which marked a fresh peak in the TDF’s two-year history.
Yields sought by banks climbed further by as much as seven basis points (bp) from last week, on top of the more than 30-bp pickup in rates across tenors during the Aug. 15 exercise.
Bids for the seven-day term deposits eased to P42.169 billion on Wednesday, still above the P40-billion offer although lower than the P50.537 billion placements received the prior week.
Average interest rates sought by players climbed to 4.2069%, around three basis points higher than the 4.1759% fetched previously.
In contrast, demand slumped for the 14-day tenor to shore up just P37.887 billion, lower than last week’s P62.531 billion and settling below the P40 billion which the central bank wanted to sell.
Banks also pushed their luck as they sought to maximize gains from the TDF as they asked for returns ranging from 4.2-4.499%, which is right below the 4.5% ceiling rate. In turn, rates averaged 4.2976% yesterday from 4.2449% a week ago.
Meanwhile, the 28-day papers saw demand slip to P26.683 billion from P34.722 billion previously, but still well above the P20 billion offering. These month-long deposits saw the biggest increase in yields, with the average rate up 7.5 bps to 4.359%.
The TDF is currently the central bank’s primary tool to arrest excess money supply in the financial system. The BSP conducts the weekly auctions of short-term papers to bring market and interbank rates within its desired spread, which now ranges from 3.5-4.5% following a cumulative 100-bp increase in benchmark rates.
The Monetary Board fired off its strongest tightening move in a decade during their Aug. 9 meeting amid signs that inflation could remain elevated until 2019.
BSP Governor Nestor A. Espenilla, Jr. has said that apart from adjusting policy rates, the TDF stands as their way to create an “effective tightening” in the market as it steers the direction for short-term interest rates.
Next week, offer volumes for the term deposits will remain steady at P40 billion apiece in the seven-day and 14-day papers and P20 billion for the 28-day tenor.

1...12,07212,07312,074...14,239Page 12,073 of 14,239
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin X Youtube