The sustained resilience of foreign direct investments, overseas Filipino (OF) remittances, and business process outsourcing (BPO) receipts provide additional buffers to the domestic economy. External debt metrics have also improved as reflected in the continued decline in the external debt-to-GDP ratio to around 23 percent. Gross international reserves (GIR) of $ billion as of end-February 2018 provide ample manoeuvring room to manage shocks.
After all, common sense dictates that “the best time to repair the roof is when the sun is shining”. It is important that all euro area countries achieve their medium-term objective of a sound fiscal position as soon as possible, and by 2010 at the latest. Furthermore, pro-cyclical fiscal policies should be avoided in all countries.