PH’s high credit rating to bring more investments, livelihood – Marcos

Manila Skyline | PHOTO: JMS

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Saturday said that the Philippines’ high credit rating from an investment watchdog will attract more investments and improved livelihood programs for Filipinos.

Japan-based Rating and Investment Information, Inc. gave the Philippines an upgraded credit rating of A minus (A-), highlighting economic growth. This is an upgrade from the earlier rating of BBB+ on the government.

“Ang patuloy na pagbababuti ng ating credit rating ay maghahatid ng mas maraming investments at dagdag na negosyo sa ating bansa na magdadala ng maraming kalidad na trabaho at mas mataas na kita para sa bawat Pilipino,” said Marcos in a statement.

(The continuous improvement of our credit rating will bring more investments and additional business opportunities in the country that will provide quality livelihood and higher incomes for every Filipino.)

READ: Philippines gets ‘A’ rating from Japanese credit watchdog

Marcos noted that the upgrade, the first in his administration, means it can help in bringing down costs and securing affordable financing for the government, businesses and livelihood for many Filipinos.

“Ibig sabihin, sa halip na gumastos tayo para sa pagbayad ng interes, magagamit natin ang matitipid na pera para sa iba’t ibang pampublikong serbisyo gaya ng imprastraktura, healthcare facilities at pagpapatayong mga silid-aralan para sa ating mga mag-aaral,” he added.

(This means that instead of spending to pay for our interest, we can use the money for different public services such as infrastructures, healthcare facilities, and construction of classrooms for the students.)

The President also said that the credit rating will improve the lives of the Filipinos, adding that this can be “paving the way for more Carlos Yulo in the near future.”

According to Rating and Investment Information, there will be a stable economic growth and improvement in the national income of the country.

READ: Investment pledges surged 220% to P189B in Q2

“The Philippine economy will likely see stable growth and continuous improvement in the level of national income against the backdrop of active public and private sector investments, development of domestic businesses sectors such as business process outsourcing, and favorable demographics, among other elements,” the report said.

A report of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said that the country’s unemployment rate went down to 3.1 percent or 2.04 million unemployed Filipinos in June 2024, a 1 percent decrease from the rate of the previous month.

However, the underemployment rate, or the number of Filipinos already working but are still seeking for additional jobs or working longer hours, increased to 12.1 percent in June or 6 million Filipinos, from 9.9 percent in May.

Meanwhile, PSA noted on Thursday that the total foreign investment pledges soared to P189.50 billion from April to June 2024, from the P59.09 billion report in the same quarter last year. This is the highest since the P394.46 billion investment record in the fourth quarter last year.