OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT (Last of two parts) The IMF’s Tobias Adrian talked about 10 metrics aimed at helping central banks (CBs) and policy makers fortify CBs independence. Adrian was quick to point out that “this is the first new CB independence index in 30 years.” These 10 metrics...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT (Part 1) At the IMF, countries are represented by their central banks in the International Monetary and Financial Committee while the finance or development ministers constitute the joint Development Committee to advise both the World Bank and the IMF mostly on issues...
OF SUBSTANCE AND FOREST Certainly it was exhilarating news last Sunday, that decision of Fitch Ratings to affirm the Philippines’ investment grade rating at BBB, a notch above the minimum investment grade. Equally significant is the stable outlook that Fitch maintained for the country. Such a...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT It was the American political scientist Hans Morgenthau who proposed that the word “equilibrium” is equivalent to “balance.” Nothing is more important than ensuring the stability of the whole while preserving the independence of its components. In its global...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Some TikToks say it all. To afford a rare McLaren 620R, worth at least $280,000 or more than ₱16 million, one should get used to living in a farm and running a piggery business. Prepare to live a simple life, grow with your father’s workers and yes, do homeschooling....
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Bloomberg and online news last Tuesday reported a closing rate of ₱58.27 to a dollar, nearly the same level it did on Nov. 8, 2022, and the worst in 18 months. BSP Governor Eli Remolona emailed media to explain that “the peso weakened beyond ₱58 to the US dollar...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Let me share some excerpts from my most recent In Brief piece for GlobalSource Partners this week. I thought we need to do a deep dive into the latest twist in China’s bullying of the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea because of its economic...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT There could not have been a more inspiring message from the IMF’s April 2024 World Economic Outlook than the global economy’s avoidance of a recession in 2023. With a strong financial system, steady capital flows to emerging markets, some downtrend in inflation, the Fund...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Not a few market players and observers were unnerved when the Philippine peso breached ₱57 to a dollar last April 17, the lowest at that time since November 2022. It was good BSP Governor Eli Remolona tried to calm the market by saying that those movements are something we...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT Last Friday, we paid our last respects for Donato “Mang Nato” Gonzales, our loyal driver of 15 years. He started working with the family in his mid-50s but he stood tall in his crew cut and with a built honed in the gym. He had a stern face, he rarely smiled, but he was...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT During the second review of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) monetary policy last Monday, the Monetary Board decided on what was obvious. The BSP maintained its policy rate at a 16-year high 6.5 percent, the fourth since that off-cycle meeting in October 2023 that...
OF SUBSTANCE AND SPIRIT It was reported last Monday that securing an “A” sovereign credit rating by the end of the Marcos Jr Administration in 2028 “may be difficult as persistent underspending and the lack of reforms to improve revenue generation continue to constrain the Philippines’...
