RP BOP surplus falls 70% to $216M in Jan 2008

The country's balance of payments fell 70 percent to $216 million in January due to strong outflows during the month, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Monday.
In its latest data release, the central bank highlighted, however, that the BOP stayed in surplus despite the year-on-year drop.
The overall BOP position is critical to the BSP, as it smooths foreign exchange volatility. A larger surplus gives the central bank better leverage to stabilize the peso's exchange rate against other currencies, particularly the US dollar.
The central bank said that during the month, inflows still outpaced outflows, of which the country's international reserves reached another record-high, surging by over $600 million from the previous month to $34.4 billion.
The GIR is expected to hit a record high of $35 billion to $37 billion in 2008, although the balance of payments surplus would drop to $3 billion to $3.5 billion. BSP Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr said he sees the BOP surplus to rise at a more moderate pace this year despite peaking forex reserves.
"We will be coming off a high base. Also, the assumption is that a large part of foreign exchange inflows will remain with banks to service the needs of their clients," Tetangco said. - GMANews.TV