BSP governor joins PBBM, cabinet at PH economic briefing in NYC

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Felipe M. Medalla joined President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. and members of the Cabinet economic and infrastructure teams in underscoring the country’s sound macroeconomic fundamentals and investment opportunities during the recent Philippine Economic Briefing (PEB) in New York City.

The PEB in New York City, held on the sidelines of President Marcos’ six-day working visit to the United States, is the second international economic briefing conducted under the new administration after the PEB in Singapore on 07 September 2022.

During the briefing, Governor Medalla emphasized the BSP’s commitment to its three pillars of promoting price stability, financial stability, and a safe and efficient payment system to support the Philippine socioeconomic agenda.

“The goal of the central bank is to create a conducive environment where both of them [the national government and the private sector] can plan better,” the Governor said. “There’s a lot of things that this government can achieve. We will do our best to create the monetary and payments environment that will get the best out of this administration.”

To this end, the BSP will ensure that the headline inflation would be between 2 and 4 percent, and possibly closer to 3 percent, by the second half of 2023.

The Governor also underscored the continuity of good fiscal and monetary management in the Philippines that provides a conducive environment for investors.

“With a combination of our long record of good fiscal and monetary management covered now by good sectoral and technical improvements in many parts of the economy, coupled with our openness to foreign investors, we are confident that the Development Budget Coordination Committee’s growth targets can be achieved,” the Governor said.

Joining Governor Medalla in the panel were Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno, Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan, and Ayala Corporation Chairperson Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

President Marcos emphasized in his keynote address that the Philippine government has created an even wider space for mutually beneficial investments while rebuilding the domestic economy for rapid growth.

Conducted regularly by the economic team, the PEB aims to update the business and financial communities on the Philippines’ economic performance, investment opportunities, and the administration’s socioeconomic agenda.