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BSP keeps policy rates unchanged
MANILA – The Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) kept policy rates unchanged on Thursday after three consecutive rate cuts last year.
In a briefing at the BSP office in Manila, Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said the Monetary Board decided to keep the central bank's target reverse repurchase rate at 5.75 percent.
The interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities will also remain at 5.25 percent and 6.25 percent, respectively.
"Inflation expectations remain within the target range," said Remolona.
The BSP's risk-adjusted inflation forecast for 2025 was changed to 3.5 percent from 3.4 percent in the previous meeting in December.
For 2026, the risk-adjusted forecast is unchanged at 3.7 percent.
"The risks to the inflation outlook have become broadly balanced for 2025 and 2026. Nonetheless, upside pressures are seen to come from the utilities sector. The impact of lower import tariffs on rice remains the main downside risk to inflation," said Remolona.
He said domestic growth prospects also continue to be firm but uncertainty over global economic policies and their impact on the domestic economy significantly increased.
Most economists earlier projected a 25 basis points rate cut during today's meeting.
Remolona, however, said the BSP's decision takes into consideration the current global uncertainties.
"I think we need a little bit of time to I guess I would say recalibrate our models. We are facing an unusual phenomenon in terms of the uncertainty of policies that will be put in place and our models don't capture those things really well. So we have to redo our models and try to capture... the uncertainty itself has an effect and that is not in our models," he said.
"Normally, we would have cut further, but something has changed. The thing that has changed is the uncertainty over what's going on globally especially the uncertainty over trade policy but there are other sources of uncertainty and we are not quite comfortable with evaluating the impact of that, the uncertainty itself and we don't quite know what the policies will be," he added.
Remolona said that uncertainty about the outlook for inflation and growth warrant is keeping monetary policy settings steady.
"Before deciding on the timing and magnitude of further reductions in the policy interest rate, the Monetary Board deems it prudent to await further assessments of the impact of global policy uncertainty and the potential effects of the actual policies," he said.
"Looking ahead, the BSP anticipates continuing its measured shift to less restrictive monetary policy settings, even as previous policy adjustments further work their way through the economy," he added.
Remolona assured that the BSP will remain data-dependent in ensuring price stability that is conducive to sustainable economic growth and employment. (PNA)
SCC News
Comelec: 27M ballots printed since start of reprinting
MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) had already printed some 27 million official ballots since the start of the reprinting process late January.
Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said the Comelec has so far covered 37 percent of a total of 72,107,420 official ballots to be printed for the May 12 polls.
"As far as ballot printing is concerned, we are so far so good. We have been exceeding our daily target of ballots to be printed," he said during a press briefing at Amoranto Sports Complex in Quezon City on Thursday.
"By our estimates, we may be able to complete ballot printing around the second week to third week of March, the most by March 19, as long as the performance of the machines remains," he added.
The poll body opened a verification facility at Amoranto to fast-track the verification of printed ballots.
The facility will house some 250 automated counting machines (ACMs) and an additional 500 verifiers for the machine and manual verification processes, respectively.
"If we are able to verify one million per day here (Amoranto) and another one million per day at the National Printing Office (NPO), we will have two million per day for verification. That's 20 million in 10 days. That's a good output," Garcia said.
Garcia said at least three million official ballots have undergone the verification process at the NPO, also in Quezon City.
Printing continues amid bets' withdrawal
The poll body, meanwhile, said printing would continue despite the withdrawal of some aspirants from the senatorial race.
“In any case, whoever withdraws now, we will not change the printed ballot. We continue. We can no longer compromise the 27 million ballots we printed,” he said in a separate interview.
Garcia said the votes that will be garnered by bets that withdrew will not be counted.
“Therefore, all votes in case of those who withdraw will be strays,” he added.
Health advocate Dr. Willie Ong was the latest senatorial candidate to withdraw, citing health reasons.
"I am officially withdrawing my candidacy for the 2025 elections, so I can focus more on taking care of my health," Ong said in a social media post.
Ong is battling sarcoma, a rare type of cancer, and is undergoing treatment abroad.
His wife, Liza, filed his candidacy in October last year.
Garcia said they will not require Ong to personally submit his statement of withdrawal.
"If there is a candidate, who cannot file his statement of withdrawal personally, we will accept it as long as he or she will present a certification from his or her doctor," he added.
Early this week, AGRI party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee also withdrew from the Senate race because lack of machinery to mount a campaign. (PNA)
CHED Corner
