BSP’s 10-month income plunges by 75% due to higher expenses

The Philippine central bank’s 10-month net income ended October fell by 75% to PHP 21.59 billion from a year earlier due to higher spending, according to data posted on its website.

Expenses rose by 65.9% to PHP 174.48 billion, while interest expenses more than doubled to PHP 138.77 billion.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) did not provide income data for October alone.

It recognized PHP 51 billion in net gain from foreign exchange (FX) rate fluctuations during the 10 months, 33.8% lower than a year ago.

The BSP records gains or losses from fluctuations in FX rates arising from its foreign currency-denominated transactions.

Meanwhile, revenue rose by 24.9% year on year to PHP 145.1 billion, much of it coming from interest income from foreign investments and government securities.

BSP’s 10-month interest income rose by 29.8% to PHP 162.98 billion from a year earlier.

The central bank posted a miscellaneous net loss of PHP 17.89 billion as of end-October, compared with PHP 9.44 billion in net loss a year earlier.

Total central bank assets went up by 2.3% to PHP 7.483 trillion in January to October from a year ago, while liabilities inched up by 1.9% to PHP 7.363 trillion.

BSP’s net worth stood at PHP 119.8 billion at the end of October, 40.4% higher than a year earlier.

The central bank’s net income rose by 87.6% to PHP 63.73 billion in 2022 from a year ago. — Keisha B. Ta-asan