Philippines posts $839-M BOP surplus in February

The Philippines posted an $839 million surplus in its balance of payments (BoP) in February, reversing the January deficit.

This surplus was driven by inflows from the national government's foreign currency deposits and the BSP's foreign exchange operations, as well as income from investments abroad.

Analysts expect import demand to weaken further due to the pandemic, potentially widening the BoP surplus in the near term.

The central bank had initially forecast net dollar inflows of at least $3 billion for 2020, but this projection may change given the economic impact of the coronavirus lockdowns starting in March.