The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) level, based on preliminary data, rose to US$101.3 billion as of end-November 2023 from the end-October 2023 level of US$101.0 billion.[1] The latest GIR level represents a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.5 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.[2] Moreover, it is also about 5.8 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 3.6 times based on residual maturity.[3], [4]    

The month-on-month increase in the GIR level reflected mainly the upward valuation adjustments in the value of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) gold holdings due to the increase in the price of gold in the international market, and the BSP’s net income from its investments abroad.

Similarly, the net international reserves, which refers to the difference between the BSP’s reserve assets (GIR) and reserve liabilities (short-term foreign debt and credit and loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)), increased by US$0.2 billion to US$100.5 billion as of end-November 2023 from the end-October 2023 level of US$100.3 billion.