Philippines: BSP expected to reduce rates on Thursday – UOB

The central bank of the Philippines (BSP) is likely to reduce the policy rate by 25bps at Thursday’s meeting, according to Lee Sue Ann, Economist at UOB Group.

Key Quotes

“We think a further improvement in the economy and a gradual rise in inflation will unlikely derail BSP’s plan to further unwind this year its previous monetary policy tightening. Strong PHP against the USD and lingering external downside risks support further rate cuts by BSP over next few months. We reiterate our call for a 25bps rate cut to 3.75% at the 6 February MPC meeting before the window of opportunity narrows further”.