This reflects improved market sentiment as evidenced by higher foreign investment as well as continued vibrancy of overseas remittances and other services receipts. This helped raise the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) to a record high of $ billion as of end-January 2008. And with the weakening dollar, the peso emerged as one of Asia’s stronger currencies.
These developments were matched by positive indicators pointing to a stronger Philippine banking sector. Bank deposits were up while bank capitalization exceeded both domestic and international standards. Bank lending to most sectors of the economy expanded last year and bank asset quality improved with NPL ratio closer to its single digit, pre-crisis level.