These include remittances from overseas Filipinos, revenues from the IT-BPO industry, receipts from the vibrant tourism sector, and sustained inflows of foreign direct investments. With these inflows, the country’s Gross International Reserves (GIR) now stands at around $ billion as of end-February 2019. This is roughly equivalent to 7.3 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.
All of these could provide sufficient buffer against external headwinds. A Second Pillar of Strength The sound and stable condition of the banking community, supported too by the thrift bank industry, has also served as a key pillar of strength of the economy.