FURTHER policy tightening this year is expected from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as risks to inflation remain on the upside. With the central bank officials leaving the door open for further tightening, ANZ Research analysts now expect another 25-basis point hike in August. “Indeed, we think the central bank needs to continue to demonstrate its vigilance on inflation. Even with the hike [last week], real interest rates remain deep in the negative territory,” they said. For his part, IHS Markit Asia Pacific chief economist Rajiv Biswas expects the BSP to hike interest rates at least once more this year.

Source: Manila Times May 13, 2018 16:30 UTC