Economy

Inflation drops to 4.2% in February

The country’s annual headline inflation rate settled to 4.2% in February 2010 from 4.3% in January. It resulted from the slowdown in the annual growth rates of food, beverages and tobacco (FBT) and housing and repairs (H&R) index. Inflation a year ago was 7.3%. Excluding selected food and energy items, core inflation climbed 3.6% in February 2010 from 3.0% in January. (National Statistics Office)

January to December 2009 Total Trade Stands at $81.338 Billion, Declines by 23.1%

Total external trade in goods for January to December 2009 reached $81.34 billion, a 23.1% decline from $105.82 billion registered in December 2008. Total imports posted a 24.2% annual decrease to $43.00 billion. Similarly, total exports fell 21.9% to $38.34 billion. The balance of trade in goods (BOT-G) sustained a deficit of $4.67 billion during the 12-month period in 2009, but this was less than the $7.67 billion deficit in 2008.

For December 2009 alone, total trade improved 20.6% to $7.20 billion from $5.98 billion in December 2008. Total merchandise imports increased 17.9% to $3.89 billion. Total exports likewise rose 23.8% to $3.31 billion. The balance of trade in goods (BOT-G) in December 2009 recorded a deficit of $579 million, higher than the last year’s recorded deficit of $626 million. On a month-on-month basis, total imports for December 2009 increased 7.3% from $3.63 billion recorded in November 2009.

Aggregate payment for the country’s top ten imports for December 2009 reached $2.99 billion or 76.9% of the total import bill. The top five were: Electronic Products (31.6% of the aggregate import bill, went up 8.5% to $1.23 billion), Mineral Fuels, Lubricants and Related Materials (19.4% share, accelerated 14.6% to $755.96 million), Metalliferous Ores and Metal Scrap (5.7% share, grew 359.8% to $223.83 million), Transport Equipment (5.4% share, increased 18.7% to $210.12 million), and Industrial Machinery and Equipment (5.15% share, grew 7.6% to $197.88 million)

Payments for imports from the top ten sources for December 2009 amounted to $2.947 billion or 75.7% of the total import. Some of these were: Japan (12.0% share), USA (10.6% share), China (9.6% share), Korea (8.2% share) and Singapore (8.1% share). (National Statistics Office)

End-February 2010 GIR Rises to US$45.7 Billion

The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) level as of end-February 2010 stood at US$45.7 billion - US$100 million higher than the end-January 2010 level of US$45.6 billion. The increase in the preliminary GIR level was due mainly to inflows from the foreign exchange operations of the BSP and income from its investments abroad, as well as revaluation gains on the BSP’s gold holdings brought about by the increase in the price of gold in the international market. These receipts were counterbalanced by outflows arising primarily from the payment of maturing foreign exchange obligations of the National Government.

The current GIR level could cover 9.3 months of imports of goods and payments of services and income. It is also equivalent to 10.2 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 4.5 times based on residual maturity. (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)

Banking

Consumer Loans Reach P413 Billion in 4th Quarter 2009

As of December 2009, the consumer loans (CLs) of universal/commercial banks (U/KBs) and thrift banks (TBs) reached P413.1 billion - up 3.2% than September 2009’s P400.1 billion and 8.7% higher than December 2008’s P 380.0 billion. The proportion of total CLs to total loan portfolio (TLP), excluding interbank loans dropped 15.2% from Sept. 2009’s 16.0% but went up from Dec. 2008’s 14.8% ratio.

By type of CLs, Residential Real Estate Loans accounted for the bulk of total CLs at 39.4% (P162.6 billion). Credit Card Receivables came second with a share of 27.9% (P115.5 billion). Auto Loans and Other Consumer Loans followed with shares of 22.9% (P94.5 billion) and 9.8% (P40.5 billion), respectively. By industry, U/KBs held the majority of the banking industry’s total CLs at 60.3% (P249.2 billion). TBs accounted for the remaining share of 39.7% (P163.9 billion). (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)

Residential Real Estate Loans Stand at P162.6 Billion in Q4

As of December 2009, the total residential real estate loans (RRELs) of universal/commercial banks (U/KBs) and thrift banks (TBs) stood at P162.6 billion, up 0.1% from September 2009’s P162.5 billion and 5.7% from December 2008’s P153.9 billion. The ratio of total RRELs to total loan portfolio (TLP), excluding interbank loans stood at 6.0%, down from Sept. 2009’s 6.5% but same as Dec. 2008’s ratio.

By industry, TBs held a bigger portion of the total residential real estate exposure of the banking system at 55.4% (P90.0 billion). U/KBs accounted for remaining 44.6% (P72.6 billion). (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)

Exposure to Real Estate of U/KBs & TBs Rises to P393.6 Billion in 4th Quarter

As of December 2009, the combined exposure of universal and commercial banks (U/KBs) and thrift banks (TBs) to the real estate sector grew 4.5% to P393.6 billion from September 2009’s P376.8 billion and 9.4% from December 2008’s P359.7 billion. The additional exposure came primarily from real estate loans (RELs), which rose by P16.8 billion to P383.7 billion. Investments in securities issued by real estate companies also expanded 0.4% to P9.9 billion. The bulk of the real estate exposure was held by U/KBs at 72.6% (P285.7 billion) share while the remaining 27.4% (P108.0 billion) was accounted for by TBs.

The exposure of U/KBs to the real estate sector rose 5.8% to P285.7 billion from the P269.9 billion posted in September 2009. This was also 9.7% higher than December 2008’s P260.5 billion. Similarly, the exposure of TBs increased 1.1% reaching P108.0 billion from Sept. 2009’s P106.8 billion and 8.9% from Dec. 2008’s P99.2 billion. (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)

Credit Card Receivables Up by 4.5% From Last Year

As of December 2009, the credit card receivables (CCRs) of universal/commercial banks (U/KBs) and thrift banks (TBs), inclusive of credit card subsidiaries reached P136.6 billion, up 4.9% from September 2009’s P130.2 billion and 4.5% from December 2008’s P130.7 billion. The ratio of total CCRs to total loan portfolio (TLP), excluding interbank loans fell to 5.0% from Sept. 2009’s 5.2% but remained unchanged from December 2008’s ratio.

By main group, U/KBs accounted for 84.2% (P115.0 billion) of total CCRs. Credit card subsidiaries of U/KBs held 15.4% (P21.1 billion). TBs that are not affiliated with U/KBs accounted for the remaining 0.4% (P0.5 billion). (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)