MANILA – Moody’s Analytics projects an unchanged policy rate for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) policy-making Monetary Board (MB) first rate setting meeting for the year on Thursday.
“The Philippine central bank will hold its benchmark policy rate steady at 4 percent at its February meeting,” it said in its Asia Pacific economic preview for the week covering Feb. 14-18, 2022 released on Monday.
The rate setting meeting is widely expected to keep key rates steady this week as BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno has repeatedly communicated his commitment for the central bank’s support to help in the economy’s recovery from the pandemic.
The MB slashed the central bank’s key policy rates by a total of 200 basis points in 2020 to help buoy the domestic economy from the pandemic.
It also reduced banks’ reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by as much as 200 basis points and allowed for a certain period banks’ lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as RRR compliance, both of which are targeted to ensure that banks will have enough liquidity for additional lending needed to boost economic activities.
In an earlier report, Moody’s Analytics said it expected the BSP, among other central banks, to keep key rates steady this year as countries continue to battle the virus-induced pandemic. (PNA)
