The Philippines ended November with its strongest foreign reserve position in more than a year, as rising gold prices helped lift the country’s external buffers despite weaker foreign investment flows, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.
Gross international reserves (GIR) stood at $111.07 billion at the end of November, slightly higher than $110.25 billion in October. The level was the highest since October 2024, when reserves reached $111.08 billion.
GIR measures the total foreign exchange assets held by the central bank, providing a safeguard against external shocks and ensuring the country can meet import and foreign debt obligations.
The increase in reserves was largely driven by gold holdings. RCBC chief economist Michael Ricafort said gold assets rose as “global gold prices gained by 5.9 percent in November,” lifting the BSP’s bullion holdings by 6.7 percent to a record $18.03 billion.
On an annual basis, reserves were up 2.42 percent from $108.49 billion, recovering from lows seen earlier this year.
However, some components of the country’s external assets declined. Foreign investments registered with the BSP fell to $87.81 billion in November from $88.09 billion in October, and were 3.8 percent lower than a year ago.
Foreign exchange holdings also slipped 4.9 percent month-on-month to $603.8 million, down 65 percent from $1.73 billion a year earlier.
According to BSP metrics, the current reserves can cover 7.4 months of imports and 3.8 times the short-term external debt due within a year.
The central bank considers reserves adequate if they can finance at least three months of imports or fully cover short-term foreign liabilities.
It expects the country’s GIR to settle at $105 billion by the end of this year and $106 billion in 2026.
