MANILA, Philippines — The country’s budget deficit expanded by 22 percent to P1.67 trillion in 2021 from P1.37 trillion in 2020, as government spending outpaced the recovery in collections due to pandemic requirements, according to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr). The Treasury said the deficit, when measured against gross domestic product (GDP), rose to […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — Local manufacturing sped past production hurdles in February and posted its best performance in three years, although questions remain on whether the industry could sustain this momentum. British information provider IHS Markit reported the Philippines’ purchasing managers’ index (PMI), a measure of manufacturing output, surged to 52.8 in February from 50.0 in January, […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — The Duterte administration continued to underspend in 2021 as it tried to temper the growth of its debts, resulting in the government preventing a breach of its budget deficit cap. Data from the Bureau of Treasury released on Tuesday showed the government disbursed a total of P4.68 trillion in 2021, up 10.6% […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — Bank lending started the year on a high note as it continued its nascent climb, perking up hopes that the country’s recovery from the pandemic could be sustained. Excluding interbank lending, outstanding loans issued by big banks rose 8.5% year-on-year in January to P9.7 trillion, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Monday. […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — Pressure is mounting for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to raise key interest rates as an escalation in inflation looms following Russia’s military attacks on Ukraine, a global think tank said. In its latest research brief, Oxford Economics said most Asia-Pacific economies would likely implement rate hikes this year as rising […]
Read MoreMANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ current account deficit may swell to above two percent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year due to the widening trade deficit as well as rising global oil prices, especially after Russia started the invasion of Ukraine, according to Moody’s Investors Service and Japanese investment bank Nomura. Moody’s said in […]
Read More
Thailand
