Diokno sets sights on ‘A’ credit rating

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said the incoming administration will pursue a fiscal consolidation plan to help the country achieve the elusive “A” investment grade score from global credit rating agencies.

Diokno told an investor roundtable discussion in Madrid, Spain the Philippines was on its way to the “A” level credit rating before the global pandemic hit in 2020. He said the Philippine economy remained strong and that the Duterte administration carried on its game-changing reforms.

“Not surprisingly, all the international and regional rating agencies unanimously affirmed the Philippines’ investment-grade ratings throughout the pandemic despite a wave of ratings downgrades for many advanced and emerging economies,” he said.

“Now, the next administration has to continue the country’s pursuit of A-level rating. This can be done by crafting, among others, a well-thought-out fiscal consolidation framework, which has been prepared by the Executive Department and ratified by Congress,” Diokno said.

Debt watchers earlier cited the country’s strong fundamentals, adequate buffers against shocks and sound macroeconomic management as the reasons why they decided to affirm the country’s investment grade ratings.

Moody’s Investors Service affirmed the Philippines’ “Baa2” investment grade rating with a stable outlook in July 2020. It was followed by S&P Global Ratings’ affirmation of its “BBB” rating with a stable outlook in May 2021.

Japan Credit Rating Agency affirmed its “A” rating with a stable outlook for the Philippines in September 2021. In February 2022, Fitch Ratings affirmed its “BBB” rating with a negative outlook for the country.

Outgoing Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III earlier warned that any inaction by the next administration on the fiscal consolidation plan prepared by the Department of Finance, which aims to reverse the P3.2-trillion COVID-related debt and recover from the economic crisis, would lead to serious consequences.

Dominguez said the plan would be “critical” to help the government continue its productive spending, grow out of its pandemic-induced debt, and provide substantial buffers to respond to lingering and future economic shocks.

The series of measures aims to reverse in a span of 10 years the additional P3.2-trillion debt incurred by the government amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The country’s outstanding debt hit a record P12.68 trillion in March on government borrowings to finance infrastructure projects and COVID-19 response efforts, latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury show.

Meanwhile, private sector economists remain bullish on the growth outlook in the second quarter, saying the number of jobs created in the previous months that contributed to the first-quarter GDP growth of 8.3 percent would sustain economic expansion in the coming months.

Economists of the First Metro Investment Corp. and the University of Asia and the Pacific said in a joint report the Philippine economy’s impressive 8.3-percent first-quarter GDP growth brought the economy to pre-pandemic levels.

They said a good part of the gains might be attributed to pre-election spending, but it would likely spill over into the second quarter, as the present administration still has much cash to spare.

“As pointed out before, the growth pace may not continue in the second half, based on historical precedents and the tighter fiscal space that the new administration will face,” the economists said in the Market Call report.

“However, the huge number of jobs created in the fourth quarter of 2021 to the first quarter of 2022 [3.4 million] constitute the major contributor to Q1 GDP growth,” the report said.

“With the record number of employed persons [at 46.5 million] as well as the labor force participation rate [65.4 percent], leading to an unemployment rate of 5.8 percent, the lowest in the post pandemic period, the positive impact will likely carry on until Q2,” it said.

Source: ManilaStandard

Foreign companies keen on investing in PH

Many international companies are keen on investing in the Philippines after the passage of game-changing reforms under the Foreign Investments Act and Public Service Act, a House leader said.

House Committee on Economic Affairs Chairman Sharon Garin said the country is now attracting the "good" kind of attention from investors who were previously hesitant to invest in the country because of restrictive old laws.

"Finally, after a century of restrictions, we now have relevant laws to help which encourages long-term investments in underutilized public sectors such telecommunications, shipping, air carriers, railways and subways," Garin said.

She particularly noted that Elon Musk's satellite-based internet service Starlink would soon operate in the Philippines.

"We have heard from Elon Musk's Starlink, which will hopefully make internet better and more accessible all over the country. Their low-orbit satellite technology can bring internet access to remote areas which are previously underserved or unserved by traditional connectivity," she said.

Garin cited Swiss Ambassador to the Philippines Alain Gaschen as saying that there are Swiss companies planning to set up operations in the country.

She also said Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Steven Robinson, as well as the European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines officials, have noted that the liberalization of some business would usher in more foreign funds and spur economic growth.

"I can go on, but the list of excited potential investors is long. What is clear to me is that by making our economic policies relevant, we are now seeing a renewed interest in revitalizing our economy from many sectors," she said.

She said increased competition will generate higher quality of service and competitive pricing for consumers.

"Better services but lower prices will be our goal without sacrificing our local businesses and the consumers. We have put safeguards, such as penalties for erring companies offering public services, and we have established a stringent set of requirements for vulnerable sectors and vetting of all potential investors," Garin said.

She stressed the need for economic and technology exchange in the country, which has been lagging behind some neighboring countries and are further hampered by the economic shutdowns during the community quarantines.

"An inflow of capital and better technology is a great step toward reviving our economy," Garin said.

The Public Service Act amendments modified an 85-year-old act to change the legal definition of "public services" and those that are blanketed by the category of the "public utilities" industry.

The law now limits "public utility" to distribution and transmission of electricity, petroleum and petroleum products transmission, water distribution, and wastewater systems, seaports and public utility vehicles.

Under the new measure, the 40-percent cap on foreign equity ownership is lifted from public services not classified as "public utility."

Meanwhile, amendments to the Foreign Investments Act would allow qualified non-Philippine nationals to do business in the country or invest in a domestic enterprise up to 100 percent of its capital and liberalizes the practice of professions not governed by existing special laws.

The law also allows foreign investors to set up 100-percent ownership of all small- and medium-sized enterprises.

Source: Manila Times

FDI net inflows hit record high $10.5B in ’21

Net inflows of foreign direct investments (FDI) at the end of 2021 reached an all-time high of $10.5 billion, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The full-year result surpassed the BSP’s initial expectation that net FDI inflows would reach P7 billion. It also breached the previous record of $10.3 billion set in 2017.

Also, the end-2021 figure was 54 percent higher than the $6.8 billion recorded in 2020.

BSP data also showed that the net inflow of long-term capital grew year-on-year for the seventh month straight in December, surging 59 percent to $1.1 billion in 2021 from $671 million in the same month of 2020.

“The growth in FDI reflected continued positive foreign investor sentiment on the country amid expectations of a rebound in domestic economic activity and declining COVID-19 reported cases, as well as the strengthening of the global economy,” the BSP said.

The central bank said 2021 net inflows were buoyed further by a 84-percent growth in nonresidents’ net investments in debt instruments. This component of FDI climbed to $7.5 billion from $4.2 billion.

Also, nonresidents’ net investments in equity capital—other than reinvestment of earnings—jumped by 35 percent to $1.3 billion from $944 million.

Equity capital

At the same time, reinvestment of earnings grew by 50 percent to $96 million from $64 million.

Most of the equity capital placements in 2021 came from Singapore, Japan and the United States. These were invested mostly in the industries of manufacturing; electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning; financial and insurance; and real estate.

In December alone, FDI net inflows increased thanks to a 60-percent year-on-year expansion in nonresidents’ net investments in debt instruments—$634 million from $396 million.

At the same time, nonresidents’ net investments in equity capital—other than reinvestment of earnings—jumped by 69 percent to $336 million from $211 million in December 2020.

This was driven by a 61-percent surge in equity capital placements—$371 million from $231 million, which offset a 75-percent surge in equity capital withdrawals—$35 million from $20 million.

Last December, equity capital placements mainly came from Singapore, Japan and the Netherlands. These were channeled primarily to the industries of electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning; manufacturing; and financial and insurance industries.

Source: Inquirer