By Jason Mago

Copyright tribune

The country’s balance of payments (BOP) swung to a surplus of $359 million in August, higher than the $88 million surplus recorded in the same month last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Friday.The central bank said the August surplus was mainly due to its net income from investments abroad. This trimmed the year-to-date deficit to $5.4 billion from $5.8 billion in the January–July period.Preliminary data showed the cumulative BOP shortfall continued to stem from the trade in goods deficit. However, this was partly offset by sustained inflows from overseas Filipino remittances, foreign borrowings by the national government, foreign direct and portfolio investments, and trade in services.The BOP outcome was reflected in the country’s gross international reserves (GIR), which rose to $107.1 billion at end-August from $105.4 billion the previous month.According to the BSP, the GIR level remains a sufficient external liquidity buffer. It is equivalent to 7.2 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income, and about 3.7 times the country’s short-term external debt based on residual maturity.The GIR consists of foreign-denominated securities, foreign exchange, gold, and other reserve assets. These reserves help the country settle foreign debt obligations, finance imports, and stabilize the peso against external shocks.