PH extends IMF loan support

The Philippines has extended its $1-billion loan support to the International Monetary Fund, to help other economies in distress.

On the sidelines of the annual IMF meeting in Washington, D.C. in October, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. signed the note purchase agreement with the multilateral lender, renewing the country’s loan facility that expired in September, the BSP said in a statement.

“As a member of the global community, the BSP shares the responsibility to contribute to the stability of the international monetary system given its sound macroeconomic fundamentals and strong external position,” it said.

To recall, the BSP first signed in 2013 the $1-billion loan facility with the IMF “to support countries going through financial difficulties to minimize their adverse impact on the global community,” it noted.

The financial facility, however, was never tapped.

The Philippines fully paid its IMF loan in December 2006 and became a net creditor in 2011.

In a forum last week, Espenilla noted the country’s sound economic fundamentals, pointing out that the IMF was now borrowing from the Philippines.

“For the longest time, the Philippines was a prolonged user of IMF resources. Today, we are lending to the IMF so the IMF can lend to others that need the resources,” Espenilla had said. —BEN O. DE VERA