The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) level, based on preliminary data, rose to $106.7 billion as of end-February from the end-January level of $103.3 billion.

The latest GIR level represents a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.5 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income. Moreover, it is about 3.8 times the country’s short-term external debt based on residual maturity.

The month-on-month increase in the GIR level reflected mainly the national government’s (NG) net foreign currency deposits with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), which include proceeds from its issuance of ROP Global Bonds, upward valuation adjustments in the BSP’s gold holdings due to the increase in the price of gold in the international market, and net income from the BSP’s investments abroad.

Similarly, the net international reserves (NIR) increased by $3.4 billion to $106.6 billion as of end-February from the end-January level of $103.2 billion. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas