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By Maricel E. Burgonio, Reporter
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said
international organizations should be consistent with their policy
assessment of rising inflation in member countries.
“If they [international organizations] want to
be helpful, they have to be consistent with their assessment that
they provide to member countries,” BSP Gov. Amando M. Tetangco Jr.
said.
Tetangco was reacting to a recent assessment
made by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during an Asia-Europe
finance ministers’ meeting in Jeju, South Korea, during which
Takatoshi Kato, IMF deputy managing director, said the Philippines,
together with Vietnam and Indonesia, may have fallen behind the
curve in terms of their interest rate policy.
“IMF said last time that monetary policy is
appropriate. In fact, they said there is room to ease,” Tetangco
said.
During the Asian-Europe finance meeting, Kato
said growing inflation risks are an immediate concern in most
emerging economies where the real interest rates are low or have
become fairly negative.
The BSP raised its key policy rates by 25 basis
points on June 5, pushing overnight borrowing and lending rates to
5.25 percent and 7.25 percent, respectively.
The move was in response to the Monetary
Board’s assessment that there are already early signs of
supply-driven pressures feeding into demand.
The governor said the current outlook on the
buoyancy of domestic demand gives BSP room for a measured policy
response.
With the increase of key-policy rates, the BSP
raised its inflation forecast between 7 percent and 9 percent this
year and 4 percent to 6 percent next year driven by higher oil and
commodity prices.
Based on the latest National Statistics Office
report, inflation reached its nine-year high of 9.6 percent in May
from 8.3 percent in April.
Higher inflation affects the country’s
economic growth as interest rates are expected to increase due to
higher oil and commodity prices.
The Philippines is expected to grow 5.7 percent
to 6.5 percent this year against a 31-year high of 7.2 percent last
year.
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