Lower revenues pulled down the net income of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as of September even as it narrowed expenditures in the first nine months.
The latest BSP data showed that its net income declined to P9.97 billion from P13.99 billion at end-September 2016.
From January to September, the BSP’s revenues dropped 15.7 percent to P48.15 billion from 2016’s P57.12 billion.
The nine-month revenue decline reversed the 32.3-percent jump in revenues during the same period in 2016.
While the end-September interest income increased to P42.35 billion from P34.7 billion in 2016, miscellaneous income plunged to P5.8 billion from 2016’s P22.43 billion.
Meanwhile, expenditures decreased 1.7 percent to P50.93 billion from P51.82 billion in the first nine months of 2016.
Interest expenses went down to P28.01 billion from P33.39 billion as of September 2016, as other expenses increased to P22.92 billion from 2016’s P18.43 billion.
As expenses exceeded revenues, the BSP registered a net loss before gains in foreign exchange (FX) rate fluctuations, income tax expense, and capital reserves of P2.78 billion at end-September, a reversal of the P5.3-billion gain in 2016.
Gains on FX rate fluctuations rose to P12.79 billion from 2016’s P8.7 billion. The BSP explained that this amount represented “realized gains from fluctuations in FX rates arising from foreign currency-denominated transactions of the BSP, including: rollover/re-investments of matured FX investments with foreign financial institutions and FX-denominated government securities; servicing of matured FX obligations of the BSP; and maturity of derivatives instruments.”
End-September income tax expense amounted P50 million. /kga