MANILA, Philippines—For the third month in a row in 2021, more dollars streamed out of the Philippines than entered it, reversing 2020’s trend of successive monthly surpluses as the COVID-19 pandemic savaged the economy.
While economic activity has been picking up in 2021, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that the balance of payments deficit in the first quarter of the year has been so far driven by debt repayments being made by the national government to foreign creditors.
In a statement, the BSP said that the country’s overall balance of payments position posted a deficit of $73 million in March 2021, a reversal from the $448 million surplus recorded in th…
Keep on reading: For 3rd month in a row, more dollars leave than enter PH economy