PH Foreign Reserves Drop to $104.6B in April 2025 Amid Global Uncertainty, Debt Payments

MANILA – The Philippines’ foreign exchange reserves declined for the second month in a row, falling to $104.6 billion in April 2025 from $106.7 billion in March, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The central bank attributed the drop to the government’s withdrawal of foreign currency deposits to service external debt and cover other expenditures, as well as the BSP’s own net foreign exchange operations.

Economist Michael Ricafort of RCBC also cited diminished foreign investments due to global financial market volatility triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariff policy, which was announced in early April and affected multiple trading partners, including the Philippines.

Despite the dip, the BSP maintained that the reserves remain “robust,” equivalent to 7.2 months’ worth of imports and 3.6 times the country’s short-term external debt based on residual maturity. This marks the 19th consecutive month that reserves have stayed above the $100-billion threshold.

The BSP emphasized that this level of reserves ensures adequate coverage of the country’s immediate foreign obligations.