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Fruitas cuts losses to P19M as revenues rise

FRUITAS HOLDINGS, Inc. has trimmed its losses to P19 million in the third quarter due to stronger consolidated revenues and lower operating expenses.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Friday, the listed food and beverage kiosk operator said its losses were lower than the previous quarter’s P27 million.

Fruitas’ consolidated revenues rose 90% to P167 million, against P88 million in the previous quarter, while its operating expenses excluding depreciation and amortization fell 56% to P102 million.

“We are glad to see that sales are recovering strongly as quarantine restrictions continue to ease. In the meantime, we have not relented in transforming our business. We have opened numerous channels so our customers can reach us easier and faster,” Fruitas President and Chief Executive Officer Lester C. Yu was quoted as saying.

However, the company’ third quarter consolidated revenues were 63% lower when compared to the similar period a year ago.

For a nine-month period, the company posted a net loss of P32.2 million, a reversal of its P53- million net income in 2019.

Further, the company’s consolidated revenues fell 54.8% year-on-year to P628.6 million compared with P1.39 billion a year ago.

“Better sales mix coming from products with lower direct costs allowed the group to improve gross profit margin for the first nine months of 2020 to 60%, compared to 58.4% during the same period last year,” the disclosure said.

Fruitas said that as of end-September, it had reopened around 700 stores.

The company said the temporary closure of the remaining stores had been initiated by the lessors located in schools, office buildings, food courts, and cinemas that were affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

“The company will be prepared to reopen these stores as restrictions are lifted,” the disclosure said. Further, the company said that as of end-October, it had opened 15 community stores under the Babot’s Farm and Soy & Bean brands as part of its expansion efforts.

Fruitas confirmed that it has plans to bring the number of its community stores to 30 by the end of 2020 and up to 100 by next year.

“These locations house products from multiple Fruitas brands under one roof and double as potential delivery hubs. Sales performance of these newly opened stores are promising and community stores are expected to contribute to margin expansion going forward,” the disclosure said.

The company said it remains on the lookout for acquisition opportunities that can be integrated into its current product line-up.

“With the balance of the initial public offering (IPO) proceeds, we continue to be well-placed to expand our core kiosk business as prime spaces become available and seize attractive acquisition opportunities,” Mr. Yu was quoted as saying in the disclosure.

“Once the economy is back in full gear, we are confident that a stronger Fruitas will be a key beneficiary,” he added. Fruitas earned P820 million from its initial public offering in 2019. It recently bought a 909.5- square-meter property in Sta. Mesa, Manila worth P140 million as its new headquarters.

On Friday, shares in Fruitas Holdings rose 5.84% or P0.08 to close at P1.45 apiece. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

First Gen signs EPC contract with McDonnell Dowell’s local unit

First Gen Corp. said its subsidiary had signed the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract with the local unit of an Australia-based group to build the Lopez-led company’s interim offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal.

It also said the same unit FGEN LNG Corp. had expanded to four the list of preferred entities from which it will choose the charter of a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) for the imported fuel.

Both actions were disclosed to the stock exchange on Friday.

Jonathan C. Russell, First Gen executive vice president and chief commercial officer, described the chosen EPC contractor — McDonnell Dowell Philippines, Inc. — as having “considerable experience in marine design and construction, including similar LNG projects.”

He also noted that the company built First Gen’s existing liquid fuel jetty in 1998 that it will now modify under the EPC contract.

The interim offshore terminal will allow FGEN LNG to hasten its ability to introduce the imported LNG to the country as early the third quarter of 2022, First Gen said. The facility will serve the natural gas requirements of existing and future gas-fired power plants, including those of affiliates and third parties.

Mr. Russell said McDonnell Dowell plans to tap into First Balfour, Inc. as a major subcontractor for the onshore gas receiving facility and the multi-purpose jetty mechanical and instrumentation installation works.

The date of construction is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2020, as soon First Gen’s unit secures the requirements, including enhanced work and safety protocols to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on the personnel and local community.

Meanwhile, First Gen said its subsidiary had expanded the list of preferred bidders for the FSRU, or the carrier that can store LNG and return it to its gaseous state through an onboard regasification plant. The carrier can then supply the fuel to a gas network.

The tenderers are: BW Gas Ltd., Dynagas Ltd., GasLog LNG Services Ltd., and Hoegh LNG Asia Pte Ltd. The latest addition is Dynagas, an LNG martime transportation company based in Athens, Greece.

On Friday, First Gen shares inched up by 0.51 % to close at P29.35 apiece. — Angelica Y. Yang

Megawide swings to loss as revenues fall

Megawide Construction Corp. registered a net loss of P321.16 million for the third quarter, a reversal from the attributable net profit of P63.86 million last year.

The company’s total revenues for the third quarter dropped by 52% to P2.62 billion, Megawide said in a disclosure to the stock exchange on Friday.

Broken down, the company saw its contract revenues decline by 41% to P2.55 billion, airport operations revenues go down by 87% to P115.91 million, and airport merchandising revenues drop by 100% to P161 thousand.

Megawide’s terminal operations business registered a revenue loss of P47.39 million for the third quarter, a reversal from the P161.62 million it generated in the same period last year.

The company’s direct costs for the quarter, which include costs from construction, airport operation, airport merchandising, and terminal operations, went down by 47% to P2.28 billion.

These brought the company’s nine-month total revenues to P9.03 billion, down by 34% from last year’s P13.69 billion.

In the nine months through September, Megawide’s contract revenues went down by 30% to P7.41 billion. Revenues from airport operations dropped by 63% to P998.17 million while the airport merchandising business also saw its revenues go down by 72% to P69.51 million.

The nine-month revenues of the company from terminal operations increased by 167% to P551.91 million.

Shares in Megawide on Friday closed 9.38% higher at P8.75 apiece. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Alliance Global posts P2.2-B profit as lockdown measures ease

ALLIANCE GLOBAL Group, Inc. (AGI) on Friday reported an attributalbe net profit of P2.03 billion in the third quarter as the looser quarantine measures and gradual reopening of the economy brought improved quarterly results for the Andrew L. Tan-led holding firm.

Although lower than the P4.73-billion attributable income in the same period a year ago, this year’s third-quarter profit was higher than the second quarter’s P837.71 million, the company’s quarterly report to the stock exchange showed.

AGI Chief Executive Officer Kevin L. Tan said the company is motivated by the improvements posted by its business units during the third quarter.

“Our interim performance also validated the soundness of our diversification strategy as evidenced by the strong results delivered by our international liquor operations even amidst the global pandemic,” Mr. Tan said.

For the nine-month period, AGI’s net income fell 54.6% year-on-year to P5.83 billion against P12.83 billion in 2019.

AGI’s property unit, Megaworld Corp., posted a net profit of P2 billion. Its rental income rose 10% to P10.6 billion versus the previous quarter due to the strong performance of its office rentals business.

For the nine-month period, Megaworld’s net profit fell 42% to P7.4 billion while consolidated revenues declined 31% to P33.3 billion.

Meanwhile, Emperador, Inc., the company’s liquor unit, posted a net income of P2.5 billion for the third quarter, while its total revenues amounted to P12.9 billion.

From January to September, Emperador’s net profit rose 11% to P5.9 billion while its consolidated revenues improved 2% to P34.5 billion.

Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., the owner and operator of Resorts World Manila, posted an attributable net loss of P1.7 billion despite posting total gross revenues of P3.7 billion during the quarter.

For the first nine months of the year, Travellers posted a net loss of P5.4 billion compared with a net income of P786 million a year ago.

“Total gross revenues reached P11.5-billion, down 55% year on year, as gross gaming revenues fell by the same token to P9.3 billion, while non-gaming revenues plunged by 53% to P2.2 billion, weighed down by limited hotel and meetings, incentives, conferencing, and exhibitions (MICE) activities,” the disclosure said.

Golden Arches Development Corp. (GADC), also known as McDonald’s Philippines, trimmed its net losses in the third quarter to P257 million, as its sales revenues reached P4.5 billion due to more stores resuming operations.

For a nine-month period, GADC posted a net loss of P967 million, against a P1.2 billion net income in the previous year.

“Sales revenues fell 39% year on year to P14.2 billion as system wide sales hit P24.2 billion due to the heavy impact of the lockdown in the second quarter. GADC ended the period with 658 stores as compared to 669 stores at the start of the year,” the disclosure said.

AGI’s Mr. Tan said the company remains optimistic that it can maintain its improvement across business units, adding that he expects the economy to improve moving forward.

“Meanwhile, we continue to help rebuild consumer confidence by assuring our stakeholders of the safe live, work and play environment in our townships,” Mr. Tan said.

“We have maintained our cost discipline and continue to observe financial prudence to support our operations amid this disruption. At the same time, we remain agile to identify and take advantage of opportunities in this rapidly changing environment,” he added.

On Friday, shares of AGI improved 1.94% or 17 centavos to end at P8.92 per piece. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Filinvest Land income dips as pandemic hits residential sales

Filinvest Land, Inc. (FLI) registered a 40% decline in attributable net income to P2.73 billion for the January-September period, as the pandemic’s impact on home sales continued to hurt its financial performance, it said in a press release on Friday.

Gross revenues declined by 32% to P12.54 billion in the nine months to September, but the company said it saw a 45% rise in residential revenues to P2.12 billion in the third quarter from the earlier three-month period.

“The marked improvement was brought about by the easing of lockdowns as well as consumer demand for this segment,” the real estate arm of Filinvest Development Corp. said.

It said the current figure was a turnaround from revenues logged in the second quarter, which was heavily affected by construction restrictions and the deferred customer payments as imposed by the government.

“Real estate revenues recovered in the third quarter as buyer amortization payments started to normalize and construction capacities increased,” said FLI President and Chief Executive Officer Josephine Gotianun Yap.

From July to September, mall rentals profits rose by 20% compared with the level in the second quarter as the country shifted to a more relaxed quarantine protocol.

“FLI’s mall operational tenants have gradually increased to 81% as more establishments have been allowed to open. FLI continues to grant rental concessions to its retail tenants to help them sustain their businesses,” the firm said.

The company said its focus would be on completing key office building projects such as the first phase of the Filinvest Innovation Park in New Clark City, the rollout of its Aspire and Futura mid- rise buildings, and residential developments across the country.

Its project portfolio includes large-scale townships such as Havila, Timberland Heights, Manna East, City di Mare and Palm Estates. It owns a 20% stake in Filinvest Alabang, the developer of Filinvest City.

FLI stocks on Friday declined 1.92% as it closed at P1.02 apiece. — Angelica Y. Yang

Phoenix Petroleum bounces back with P296-M income

Dennis A. Uy-led Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Inc. reported a net income of P296 million in the third quarter, reversing its P5-million second-quarter losses as overall volume sales grew by over 40%.

The oil company did not disclose a comparative figure for the previous year in its regulatory filing on Friday.

Phoenix Petroleum’s return to profitability in third quarter allowed it to trim its year-to-date net loss to P95 million.

Overall volume sales climbed by 42% from July to September due to the recovery of its local business amid relaxed quarantine measures and tripled sales in other countries. The year-to-date overall volume was 23% higher year-on-year, even if it ended flat in the third quarter.

Phoenix Petroleum reported that its overseas liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) volume in Vietnam grew by 8% in the third quarter. Domestic volume climbed 14% as travel and lockdown restrictions eased.

The firm’s retail business has also reached 80% of its pre-pandemic volume, as close to 100% of its network is back in operations.

From July to September, operating expenses per liter declined by 22% year-on-year. Phoenix Petroleum said that it was able to realize around P1 billion in cost savings and P1.5 billion in capital expenditures.

Phoenix Petroleum has business interests in the trading of petroleum products, distribution of fuels, and the marketing of LPG, lubricants and other chemicals, among others. Through its subsidiaries, it has expanded into selling its fuel products, convenience store retailing and digital transaction services.

Shares in Phoenix Petroleum on Friday inched down by 1.07% as it closed at P13 apiece. — Angelica Y. Yang

Pilipinas Shell takes P7.5-B hit after Batangas refinery closure

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. has logged P7.5 billion in one-off charges in the third quarter, following the closure of its Tabangao, Batangas refinery in August, the firm said in a disclosure to the local bourse on Friday.

Pilipinas Shell transformed the shuttered refinery into an import facility, which is now serving Luzon and northern Visayas.

The one-time charges brought the firm’s total net loss to P13.9 billion during the nine-month period ending September, reversing a net income of P4.37 billion a year ago.

Without the non-recurring item, the company’s normalized bottomline stood at a P6.4-billion net loss, around 4.5% higher than figure in the previous quarter.

Cesar G. Romero, Pilipinas Shell president and chief executive officer, expressed optimism that the relaxed quarantine restrictions would allow the economy to recover.

“The wins are coming in gradually as more businesses operate at increased capacity in the areas of manufacturing and transportation, to name a few,” he said in a statement.

In the third-quarter alone, Pilipinas Shell recorded a net loss of P7.13 billion, a departure from its net income of P640.68 million in the same three months last year.

The firm said it boosted its efforts to maintain financial resilience by posting savings of P2.5 billion by the end of the third quarter. The figure exceeds its P2-billion cash conservation target.

Shares in Pilipinas Shell inched down on Friday by 1.08% to close at P16.52 apiece. — Angelica Y. Yang

Global Ferronickel income jumps 93% on higher export revenues

NICKEL-ore producer Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. reported a 93% increase in its net income to P1.56 billion as of September due to higher export revenues.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Friday, the company said its export revenues for the period rose 16% to P5.6 billion against the P4.8 billion it posted a year ago.

Global Ferronickel President Dante R. Bravo said the company had been supported by the overall performance of its units.

“Despite the temporary halt in operations at the start of our mining season, we have been able to recover promptly and achieve remarkable results,” Mr. Bravo was quoted as saying.

During the nine-month period, the company said the sale of its nickel ore amounted to 4.379 million wet metric tons (WMT) against the 4.642 million WMT a year ago. It shipped 80 vessels of nickel ore compared with 85 vessels last year.

“The decrease in the number of vessels loaded, and consequently in the volume of nickel ore shipped, was a result of the temporary suspension of operations in April to combat the spread of the coronavirus,” the disclosure said.

The company’s product mix was 59% low-grade ore and 41% medium-grade ore in 2020 against 42% low-grade ore and 58% medium-grade ore last year.

“The average revenue per vessel this year is P69.4 million, higher by 23.3% compared to 2019.

These shipments were sold solely to Chinese customers consisting of 2.588 million WMT low- grade nickel ore and 1.791 million WMT medium-grade nickel ore,” it said.

On Friday, shares in the company rose 7.10% or P0.11 to P1.66 per piece. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Axelum posts lower profit, expects growth momentum

Axelum Resources Corp. posted a 12.3% decline in net income to P180.16 million for the third quarter despite the strong sales of its coconut water and coconut milk powder products.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Friday, the exporter of coconut-based products said its sales for the quarter rose 4% to P1.37 billion, largely benefitting from high global market demand.

For a nine month period, the company said its net income fell 37.1% to P383.1 million, while its sales amounted to P3.75 billion.

Axelum’s coconut water volumes rose 14% due to higher retail consumption, while its coconut milk powder volumes jumped 5% after posting higher orders for food and non-food commercial applications.

The company said that coconut water and coconut milk powder account for 43% of its total revenues.

Axelum Resources Corp. President and Chief Operating Officer Henry J. Raperoga said the company’s performance showed that it has regained its growth trajectory.

Further, the company said that it was able to post growth in the third quarter despite being more cautious in booking desiccated coconut orders as it wanted to ensure that it could still deliver to key clients amid disruptions to operations due to the pandemic.

“Through the years, the Axelum brand has been built on product quality and reliability. As such, we had to ensure we were able to fulfill our commitments even if this meant sacrificing short- term volume,” Mr. Raperoga said.

For the rest of the year, the company said it expects to meet higher order volumes of coconut water from its client, Vita Coco.

Axelum is also finalizing its plant-related food expansion projects such as more assembly lines for new product variants, as part of its growth plans for 2021.

“We are confident of sustaining this momentum into the Christmas season where consumption is historically at its peak. Altogether, we believe that Axelum is headed in the right direction,” Mr. Raperoga said.

On Friday, shares in Axelum Resources in the stock exchange increased 0.68% or P0.02 to close at P2.97 each. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

OECD cuts Philippine growth outlook

By Beatrice M. Laforga, Reporter

The Philippines is expected to experience the worst economic contraction this year among five economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN-5) after failing to contain a coronavirus pandemic that could further limit spending and investment, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The Philippine economy is likely to shrink by 8.4% this year, the OECD said in the November update of its biannual report Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India. This is worse than its 3.2% contraction forecast in July.

It expects economic contractions of 8.2% for Thailand, 6.9% for Malaysia and 3.3% for Indonesia, as well as 1.5% growth for Vietnam.

“Differentiated measures to contain the pandemic will be in effect across the country through at least October, as the Philippines’ COVID-19 case tally exceeded 350,000 as of mid-October,” the OECD said. “These restrictions add to the ongoing pressure on private consumption and investment spending.”

Household spending accounted for 73% of the country’s economic output in the third quarter, while the share of investment was 18%.

Philippine real gross domestic product would return to growth of 6.2% next year assuming economic output starts to recover toward the end of the year, in part supported by the government’s pledge to quicken spending on public infrastructure, it added.

The economy shrank by 11.5% in the third quarter and updated data showed the contraction in the second quarter was worse at 16.9%

The OECD had not yet taken these latest data into account in its report.

The government allotted P1.12 trillion for infrastructure projects under next year’s P4.5-trillion spending plan as it seeks to generate 1.7 million jobs and pump-prime the economy.

The government is banking on the multiplier effects from infrastructure spending to prop up the economy, aside from relief packages including a measure to lower the corporate income tax and create a special vehicle where banks can offload their bad assets.

The OECD said signs of recovery were evident in the second half, adding that the availability of a treatment or vaccine for the coronavirus would speed up the recovery for all economies.

But renewed tensions between the US and China remained a concern for ASEAN countries, while a surge in bad loans and a potential sharp correction of asset prices that could result in huge capital outflows could threaten the region’s growth.

The resurgence of coronavirus infections that could result in more lockdowns is still a threat to the region’s economic rebound, it added.

“The strength of each country’s economic recovery will depend not only on the evolution of the epidemiological situation, but also on structural factors and the capacity to respond with stabilizing policies,” the OECD said.

It also warned about the country’s rising debt, which could strain the state’s ability to pay maturing debt on infrastructure projects and jeopardize investment in future projects.

The government plans to borrow P3 trillion this year as it plugs the budget deficit — expected to hit 9.6% of economic output — after increasing spending on its pandemic response and falling tax collections.

It borrowed P2.56 trillion between January and September, 179% higher than a year earlier, according to official data.

The government’s debt stock is expected to reach P10.16 trillion by year-end, which is equivalent to 53.9% of GDP. Its outstanding debt stood at P9.369 trillion at the end of September.

‘STRONG REBOUND’

The Asian Development Bank expects the Philippine economy to shrink by 7.3% this year, worse than its previous forecast of a 3.8% contraction. The World Bank expects the economy to shrink by 6.9%, worse than its earlier expectation of a 1.9% contraction.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) also cut its outlook to an 8.3% contraction from 3.6%.

The three main credit rating agencies also gave a dimmer economic outlook — contractions of 9.5% from S&P Global Ratings, 8% from Fitch Ratings and 7% from Moody’s Investors Service.

Still, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said “the worst seems to be over” for the country.

The economy is geared for a strong rebound next year, supported by expected improvements in the last quarter, he told an online forum hosted by the US Embassy.

He also said the government had shifted its response to the pandemic by using strict lockdowns only as a last resort to help the ailing economy recover. This is along with recent moves to allow more businesses to open and expand the capacity of mass transit.

Mr. Dominguez said the Philippines is being positioned to attract more private investments from the US as the economy reopens further and companies overseas reshuffle their suppliers from China to other Asian countries.

“Next year, we expect the Philippine economy to post a strong rebound,” Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said at an online forum on Friday. “We hope that the Philippines’ strong fundamentals, fiscal stamina, and effective governance will continue to make us a promising investment destination and a growing market for US investors.”

A number of American companies are looking to expand or move from China to Asia, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez told the same forum, adding that the Philippines would want to become a preferred destination.

Mr. Dominguez said US companies should consider investing in the Philippines’ growing agriculture sector as the country moves to promote the use of digital technology.

“Manufacturing is another key sector that we will revitalize in the post-pandemic era,” he said. “This is a good time for the US firms that are looking to diversify their supply chains to see the Philippines as a viable source of intermediate products and services.”

The US was the country’s third-largest export market in September, behind Japan and China, according to government data. The US was the country’s fifth biggest source of imports.

10-month PEZA investments fall amid pandemic

Investments in the country’s economic zones fell by more than a quarter to P72.6 billion in the 10 months through October amid a coronavirus pandemic, according to the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

The number of projects dropped by 45% to 248, PEZA Director-General Charito B. Plaza told an online meeting of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines, Inc. on Friday.

Direct employment in economic zones also fell by 2.4% to 1.53 million jobs from January to September from a year earlier, she said. PEZA posted a 0.63% improvement in the value of exports to $40.8 billion, she added.

“Despite the pandemic, PEZA continuously receives [reports of] expansions and new investments,” Ms. Plaza said, noting that the semiconductor and electronics manufacturing sector continued to “contribute the biggest export income.”

Semiconductors and electronics in PEZA ecozones posted an 8.23% decline in exports to $16.71 in the first nine months.

Ms. Plaza traced the decline to difficulties in importing raw materials amid a coronavirus pandemic. She said almost half of the sector’s raw materials and supplies are imported.

The sector’s direct employment fell by 3.18% to 371,138 jobs during the period from a year earlier.

Investment in the sector from January to October dropped by a quarter to P8.86 billion, Ms. Plaza said.

Still, she said export companies have survived during the pandemic. “While domestic enterprises are on lockdown, our export companies are the ones maintaining the economy.”

As of Oct. 10, 87% or 2,629 companies in economic zones nationwide were operating, Ms. Plaza said, adding that these employ about 1.2 million Filipinos. She said only 13% or 387 companies were not operating or had no production.

Ms. Plaza said the agency had suspended the 30% limit on yearly revenue that locators can generate outside IT parks given the work-from-home arrangements during the health crisis.

The limit was increased to 90% and will be effective until Sept. 12 next year, she added. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Forex reserves hit all-time high at end-October

By Beatrice M. Laforga, Reporter

Philippine dollar reserves rose to a fresh record of $103.814 billion at the end of October, boosted by the central bank’s foreign exchange operations.

The gross international reserves rose by 3.35% from a month earlier, based on documents sent by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin E. Diokno to reporters on Friday.

The higher reserves were largely due to the central bank’s net foreign exchange operations worth $3.46 billion, $77 million worth of net deposits made by the government in foreign currency, and the revaluation gains on BSP’s gold holdings worth $49 million.

The reserve level at the end of September was already higher than the central bank’s $100-billion projection for the full year.

“The end-October 2020 GIR level represents more than adequate external liquidity buffer,” BSP said in a statement.

It said the current stock was equivalent to 10.3 months of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income. It could also cover 9.3 times the country’s short-term foreign debt based on original maturity, and 5.4 times based on residual maturity.

The higher reserve level reflects the narrowing trade deficit data as the growth in exports outpace imports, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message .

“For the coming months, the GIR could still post new record highs, partly on relatively narrower trade deficits/net imports from year-ago levels by about $1 billion to $2 billion per month,” he said.

Exports rose by 2.2% to $6.22 billion in September, the first expansion in seven months, while merchandise imports were still down by 16.5% to $7.92 billion.

The trade deficit narrowed to $1.71 billion that month from $3.41 billion a year ago.

Mr. Ricafort said the expected increase in remittances from migrant Filipino workers in time for the Christmas season could further push reserve levels to a new record.

“The GIR could also post new record highs in view of more proceeds of foreign borrowings by the government especially for various COVID-19 programs and by the private sector that entail foreign investors in the coming months amid near record low interest rates,” he added.