GIR hit $76.54B in March

The country’s gross international reserves hit $76.54 billion last March, up by 16 percent from the $65.98 billion registered in the same period last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported.

But the figure in March marked a decline from the record $77.01 billion posted in February 2012.

The central bank said that the month-on-month drop came about after the government decided to pay off some of its maturing obligations denominated in foreign currencies.

But the reserves “continued to provide the economy with a comfortable buffer with which to withstand possible external shocks,” BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a statement.

GIR is the amount of foreign exchange reserves of an economy. It indicates a country’s ability to meet its foreign exchange requirements, such as the payment of imported goods and settlement of debts to foreign creditors.

The BSP said the latest amount of GIR would be enough to cover 11.5 months worth of the country’s usual imports, and 6.5 times the country’s foreign debt maturing within the short term.

The usual drivers of the country’s GIR are remittances from overseas Filipino workers, foreign portfolio investments, and foreign investments in the country’s business process outsourcing sector.

According to monetary officials, the country’s rising GIR proves that the country deserves an upgrade in its credit rating.

The country is aiming for an investment grade rating by 2013 or earlier.

The Philippines is rated a notch below investment grade by Fitch Ratings, and two notches below the grade by Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s.

Fitch has assigned a “stable” outlook on its rating for the Philippines, suggesting that the country’s may remain unchanged at least for the short term.

On the other hand, Moody’s and S&P have assigned a “positive” outlook on the Philippines, indicating the probability of an upgrade within a year.