PH dollar position reverted to deficit in April

MANILA, Philippines — Withdrawals made by the government to pay some of its offshore debts sent the country’s dollar position back to a deficit in April, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Monday.

BSP data showed the Philippines’ overall balance of payments (BOP) position stood at a deficit of $639 million in April, a turnaround from the $1.2-billion surplus recorded in March.

The latest BOP gap was also over four times larger than the $148 million deficit a year ago.

The BOP summarizes an economy’s transactions with the rest of the world during a certain period. A surplus arises when more foreign funds enter the economy against those that left, which may increase the country’s dollar resources used to pay for its foreign debts and meet import requirements.

A BOP deficit means the reverse happened.

READ: PH seen to generate $700-M BOP windfall this year

For this year, the BSP projects a BOP surplus of $700 million which, if realized, would be smaller than the $3.7-billion windfall recorded in 2023.

Explaining the April outturn, the central bank said the deficit “reflected outflows arising mainly from the national government’s net foreign currency withdrawals from its deposits with the BSP to settle its foreign currency debt obligations and pay for its various expenditures.”

Figures showed the dollar gap in April was enough to flip the four-month BOP back to a deficit of $401 million, a reversal from the $3.3-billion surplus registered in the same period last year.