BSP reserves hit record USD 112.7B

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) climbed to a new all-time high of USD 112.7 billion as of end-February 2026, based on preliminary data.

In its March 6 press release, the BSP said the latest reserve level gave the Philippines a stronger external liquidity buffer at a time when global financial conditions remain vulnerable to shifts in trade, capital flows, and geopolitical risk.

The central bank said the reserve stock was equivalent to 7.5 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.

It also covered about 4.2 times the country’s short-term external debt based on residual maturity, well above the conventional adequacy benchmark cited by the BSP.

By the BSP’s own convention, reserves are considered adequate if they can finance at least three months of imports and related external payments, while reserve cover for short-term debt is deemed sufficient if it is at least equal to 100 percent of obligations falling due within the next 12 months.

The BSP said GIR consists of foreign-denominated securities, foreign exchange, and other reserve assets, including gold.

These reserves serve as a buffer against external economic shocks, enabling a country to pay for imports, service foreign debt obligations, and help stabilize the currency, according to the central bank.

Data attached to the release showed that the February 2026 GIR level edged up from USD 112.6 billion in January 2026 and surpassed the previous record of USD 111.3 billion posted in November 2025.

The chart included in the release also showed the steady buildup of reserves over the past several years, from USD 81.6 billion in 2017, USD 79.2 billion in 2018, USD 87.8 billion in 2019, and USD 110.1 billion in 2020, before easing to USD 108.8 billion in 2021 and USD 96.1 billion in 2022.

Reserves then recovered to USD 103.8 billion in 2023, rose further to USD 106.3 billion in 2024, reached USD 110.8 billion in 2025, and climbed again to USD 112.7 billion by end-February 2026.

The same chart showed the import cover ratio at 7.8 months in 2017, 6.9 in 2018, 7.6 in 2019, 12.3 in 2020, 9.7 in 2021, 7.2 in 2022, 7.6 in 2023, 7.3 in 2024, 7.4 in 2025, and 7.5 by end-February 2026.

The short-term debt cover ratio based on residual maturity stood at 4.2 in 2017, 3.6 in 2018, 4.0 in 2019, 5.2 in 2020, 5.5 in 2021, 3.9 in 2022, 4.0 in 2023, 4.0 in 2024, 3.9 in 2025, and 4.2 at end-February 2026.

A separate breakdown on page two of the BSP release showed that the February 2026 reserve position was made up of USD 83.65 billion in foreign investments, USD 23.06 billion in gold, USD 3.98 billion in special drawing rights, USD 1.31 billion in foreign exchange, and USD 726.4 million in reserve position in the fund.

Compared with January 2026, the BSP’s data showed gold holdings increased from USD 20.67 billion to USD 23.06 billion, while foreign investments fell from USD 86.02 billion to USD 83.65 billion.

Foreign exchange also increased from USD 1.22 billion in January to USD 1.31 billion in February, while special drawing rights inched up from USD 3.98 billion to USD 3.98 billion on a rounded basis, and reserve position in the fund slipped from USD 730.2 million to USD 726.4 million.

For the Philippines, a higher GIR level is closely watched because it signals the country’s capacity to absorb external shocks, defend against volatility in foreign exchange markets, and meet payment obligations even during periods of stress in global trade and capital markets.

The latest figures suggest that, at least from the standpoint of reserve adequacy, the country remains in a relatively strong position heading into the rest of 2026.