Your Morning Fix

• The National Government’s outstanding debt increased to PHP 16.63 trillion by the end of February, reflecting a 1.96% rise from January and a 9.57% year-on-year growth from February 2024.
• According to preliminary data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, bank lending growth decelerated to 12.2% year-on-year in February from the 12.8% expansion in January.
• The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas estimated headline inflation in March to be within 1.7% to 2.5%, a significant slowdown compared to the 3.7% rate recorded in March 2024.
• The White House confirmed that US President Donald Trump will announce new tariffs on April 2, dubbed “Liberation Day,” with reciprocal tariffs taking effect immediately and a 25% auto import tariff starting April 3.
• In anticipation of President Trump’s upcoming auto import tariffs, US purchases of pickup trucks and SUVs increased in the first quarter as consumers anticipated significant price increases.