 Merchandise exports grew 15.4% to US$3.3 billion in January from US$2.8 billion a year ago. Electronic products remained the country’s top dollar earner, increasing 12.8% to US$2.2 billion from US$1.9 billion.
 The inflation rate picked up to 8.5% in February from 8.4% in January. This increase may not have even accounted for the second round of fuel pump price hikes in the last week of February.
Gross International Reserves went up 4.6% to US$16.5 billion in end-January from US$15.7 billion in end-February, stemming from proceeds of the national government’s Global Bond issue due 2030
The national government incurred a fiscal deficit of P16.5 billion in January, 2.4% up from P16.1 billion a year ago. Revenues rose 21.1% to P64.3 billion from P53.1 billion. The Bureau of Internal Revenue collected two-thirds of the total revenues.
Domestic liquidity expanded faster at 10.8% in end-January from 9.1% in end-2004. Bangko Sentral attributes the increase mainly to the increase in depository corporations’ investments in government securities.
Foreign direct investments shrunk 86.3% to US$7.8 million in January from US$56.6 million a year ago. Almost 70% of foreign equity investments registered with the Bangko Sentral went into the wholesale and retail trade sector.
Merchandise imports grew 7.5% to US$40.3 billion in 2004 from US$37.5 billion in 2003. Electronic products accounted for 44% of the imports last year. Mineral fuels and lubricants expanded 25.2% to US$4.7 billion from US$3.8 billion.
Manufacturing’s volume of production index grew 5.7% in December 2004, down from 8.1% in November 2004. Despite the overall slowdown, expansion picked up among the following sectors: non-metallic mineral products, publishing and printing, rubber products, textile, furniture and fixtures, miscellaneous manufactures, and machinery excluding electrical.
The nonperforming loan ratio among the country’s universal and commercial banks eased to 12.7% in end-December 2004 from 13.6% in end-November 2004. The level of nonperforming loans declined 6.1%.
The national government’s debt bloated 13.6% to P3.8 trillion in end-2004 from P3.4 trillion in end-2003. In terms of GDP, the debt ratio rose to 78.7% from 78.0%. Domestic debt grew faster at 17.5% to P2.0 trillion from P1.7 trillion. |
Results of the latest Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES) revealed what Filipino families have been ranting about their quality of life. Inflation-adjusted estimates showed a decline of 12% in the average income of Filipinos, from P148,616 in 2000 to P130,594 in 2003. Moreover, the average income increased by only 2.5% from P145,121 to P148,616. Ideally, incomes should have increased by 14% in order to keep up with inflation. Average expenditure was registered at P124,377 in 2003, increasing by 4.7% from P118,839 in 2000.
