BoP deficit exceeds $5B in first 9 months

THE country’s balance of payments (BoP) deficit ballooned in September, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Friday, hitting an over four-year high and boosting the year-to-date figure past the $5-billion mark.

September’s $2.696 billion result reversed the $1.272-billion and $24-million surpluses recorded in August and a year earlier. It was the largest since January 2014 when the payments position stood at a deficit of $4.48 billion.