Peso is ‘more stable’ now – BSP

BY LEE C. CHIPONGIAN

Sep 13, 2023 03:08 PM

  

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Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Deputy Governor Francisco G. Dakila Jr. said the peso at mid-P56 versus the US dollar is "much more stable" today compared to same period last year.

Dakila said the BSP’s aggressive nine straight rate hikes that brought the key rate to 6.25 percent as of March this year has done enough to stabilize the exchange rate.

“There was intervention by the BSP in the market to calm the foreign exchange market (in late 2022) and also adjustments in the policy interest rate has implied that the peso has now become much more stable,” he said. Dakila is currently in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He and the administration’s economic team held a Philippine Economic Briefing last Sept. 12, its first in the Middle East. 

The BSP official assured investors and market traders that the central bank will continue to allow the peso to be influenced by market sentiments, and that its hawkish stance is good for the peso.

“We have remained committed to market determination of the peso,” he said.

He also stressed that the BSP “has only participated in the foreign exchange markets when the peso became volatile and post risks to inflation. Such was the situation in the third quarter last year when the Fed (US Federal Reserve) began to aggressively adjust the Fed policy rate.”

The BSP’s key rate remains at 6.25 percent for the past three Monetary Board policy meetings in a row, but the BSP always signals its hawkish stance. From May 2022 until March 2023, the BSP raised its benchmark rate by a cumulative 425 basis points, partly in response to the US Fed’s own aggressive policy actions to battle its inflation problems. 

Policy rate actions have an impact on the exchange rate. A cut in rate can lead to a weak peso, for example, while a rate hike could do the opposite. A peso depreciation can also directly affect inflation since it will increase the price of imported commodities.

To avoid extreme and substantial changes in the exchange rate, the BSP intervenes in the spot market to strengthen the peso by releasing US dollar liquidity. It withdraws from the country’s international reserves to do this.

In 2022, the BSP unloaded $15 billion to defend the peso against speculative attacks and to prevent it from breaking past P60. So far, the peso’s record-weakest level is P59 vis-à-vis the US dollar which was in September and October last year.

Last month, BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona said BSP’s tightening bias is good for the peso-US dollar rate because it props up the local currency despite some volatility.

At the P56 level, the BSP considers the peso movement as stable because it moves in both direction, either to appreciate or become stronger than the greenback, or it depreciates or closing weaker versus the US dollar at the end of the trading day. The BSP call this a normal exchange rate day, driven by business operations.

Since the BSP uses a flexible and free-floating exchange rate policy, it remains market-determined. The BSP therefore does not target a peso level versus the US dollar nor do they announce forecasts. But as a consequence of a higher BSP rate though, it will help alleviate pressures off the peso which in turn, will curb inflationary impulses due to steep global commodity prices. 

As of its opening trade on Wednesday, Sept. 13, the peso was at P56.68 to the US dollar. This was weaker from its last close of P56.65 on Sept. 12.

Renten-Tabelle zeigt: So viel Geld könnten Rentner 2024 bekommen – „Über Niveau von 2023“

Stand:13.09.2023, 16:19 Uhr

Von: Patricia Huber  

Die Lohnentwicklung in Deutschland könnte Rentnern 2024 eine freudige Überraschung bescheren. Eine deutliche Rentenerhöhung ist in Sicht.

München – Die Inflationsrate in Deutschland liegt derzeit immer noch bei über sechs Prozent (Stand: August 2023). Wenn man nur die Verbraucherpreise bei Nahrungsmitteln betrachtet, sogar bei neun Prozent. Diese Preissteigerungen machen sich auch in den Geldbeuteln der Verbraucher bemerkbar. Besonders schwierig ist die Lage auch für Rentner. Sie können schließlich nicht auf Tarifverhandlungen oder eine Gehaltserhöhung hoffen.

Rente: Ökonomen rechnen mit bis zu sechs Prozent mehr 2024

Es gibt aber auch gute Nachrichten für Renten-Beziehende. Denn die Anpassung der Renten hängt an der Lohnentwicklung in Deutschland. Heißt also: Wenn die Löhne steigen, steigen auch die Renten. Im 2. Quartal 2023 lag der Nominallohnindex bei 6,6 Prozent, im ersten noch bei 5,6 Prozent. Mit den Tariferhöhungen in vielen Branchen dürfte sich dieser Trend auch in der zweiten Jahreshälfte fortsetzen. 

Damit wird voraussichtlich auch die Rente 2024 wieder deutlich steigen. Die letzte Erhöhung gab es zum 1. Juli 2023. Zu diesem Stichtag wurden die Renten im Westen um 4,39 Prozent und im Osten um 5,86 Prozent angehoben. Im kommenden Jahr dürfte das sogar noch mehr werden, wie auch der Wirtschaftsweise Martin Werding im Interview mit IPPEN.MEDIA vermutet. „Die Anpassung orientiert sich an der durchschnittlichen Lohnsteigerung in diesem Jahr. Grob überschlagen lägen wir damit über dem Niveau von 2023“, machte der Ökonom klar.

Unser kostenloser Renten-Newsletter versorgt Sie regelmäßig mit allen relevanten News zum Thema. Hier geht es zur Anmeldung.

Aber auch andere Experten rechnen mit einem starken Anstieg. So beispielsweise Renten-Experte Bernd Raffelhüschen: „Ab Mitte 2024 bekommen Rentner ein Plus von mindestens 5,5 bis 6 Prozent“, prognostizierte er gegenüber der Bild. Ähnlich optimistisch zeigt sich Professor Jens Boysen-Hogrefe vom Kieler Institut für Weltwirtschaft. Auch er hält sechs Prozent für möglich, wie er der Zeitung sagte. 

Wenn es nach Experten geht, dürfen sich Rentner im kommenden Jahr über eine satte Erhöhung freuen. (Symbolfoto) © IMAGO/Michael Gstettenbauer

Rente 2024: So hoch könnte sie ausfallen

Doch wie wirkt sich das konkret auf die Renten aus? Wir haben zwei Musterbeispiele berechnet: Eine Rentenanpassung von fünf Prozent und eine in Höhe von sechs Prozent. In der folgenden Tabelle können Sie dann ablesen, wie stark ihre Rente mit dieser Erhöhung ansteigen würde.

Wichtig ist aber auch zu betonen, dass manche Rentner durch eine Rentenerhöhung auch in die Steuerpflicht rutschen können. Zudem müssen noch Sozialabgaben und Versicherungsbeiträge abgezogen werden. 

Cayetano urges TESDA: Educate Filipinos on value of technical vocation

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday urged the leaders of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to help communicate to the public the value of TESDA certification and how, like a college degree, it can help them succeed in life.

“The greatest hindrance of technical vocation in the Philippines is may pagka-matapobre pa rin tayo kapag walang diploma,” the independent senator said during the hearing on TESDA’s proposed 2024 budget on Wednesday, September 13, 2023.

“Even if may diploma ka, we tend to look at the name of the school and the country where we graduated,” he added.

Cayetano said the problem lies in the lingering mentality among Filipinos that TESDA mostly caters to college drop-outs and out-of-school youth. 

“If we do not fight the mentality or stigma, ano ang lumalabas? Tatanungin ang bata, ‘Anong gusto mo maging?’ [The child will answer] ‘E ‘di mag college.’ [But then the child will be told] ‘Eh paano kung magdrop-out ka na, mag-TESDA ka na lang!’” he said.

‘Hindi dapat ganon,” he added, urging TESDA to help educate Filipinos about the value of technical education.

 “Baka your job is not only educating those who want to have skills but educating all Filipinos that we are human beings and the diplomas are just certifications of what we can do. We can actually be non-schooled,” he said.

To elaborate his point, Cayetano cited prominent people such as the late Senator Blas Ople, the late Apple founder Steve Jobs, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates who were successful in life despite dropping out of college.

He also gave Germany as an example of a country where students can work in big companies while they are still in high school.

“Sa Germany, kahit high school [student] ay nasa accounting department na ng malaking kumpanya at nag-apprentice sa banks. No one will doubt the quality of the banking and the car industry in Germany,” he said.

Cayetano said this change in belief and mentality should be inculcated in everyone,  particularly students who may aspire for non-traditional career tracks. 

“Dapat from elementary to high school pa lang, kapag sinabi ng mga bata ‘Gusto ko maging magaling sa automotive,’ [someone will ask] ‘Saan mo gusto?’ [and the child will reply] ‘Gusto ko sa TESDA!” he said.

Wrapping up his manifestation, Cayetano expressed his “support to the TESDA family” as it works to improve the quality of technical education in the country as well as the mindset of the people about TESDA diplomas. ###

Why do we always have to forgive?

 

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

MANY reasons can come to mind to answer that question. One is that Christ himself said so. When asked by Peter how many times one should forgive, he stretched to practically infinite times the suggestion of Peter of 7 times to 70 times 7.

On another occasion, Christ also said that we need to forgive others if we want to be forgiven ourselves. “Forgive and you shall be forgiven,” he said (Lk 6,37) He reiterated this injunction when he said: “For if you will forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father will forgive you also your offences. But if you do not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your offences.” (Mt 6,14-15)

It’s clear therefore that we can only be forgiven if we also forgive others. This injunction is meant for everyone, and not only for a few whom we may consider to be religiously inclined. 

That’s also why he easily forgave the woman caught in adultery. And to those whom he cured of their illnesses, it was actually the forgiveness of their sins that he was more interested in.

To top it all, Christ allowed himself to die on the cross as a way to forgive all of our sins, and to convert our sins through his resurrection as a way to our own redemption. What he did for us he also expects, nay, commands that we also do for everybody else. 

If Christ can offer forgiveness to those who crucified him—and there can be no worse evil than killing Christ who is God—why do we find it hard to offer forgiveness to others?

It is presumed that all of us sin one way or another. That’s why St. John said: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 Jn 1,8) I am sure that our personal experiences can bear that out easily.

No matter how saintly we try ourselves to be, sin always manages to come in because of our wounded humanity and the many temptations within and around us. As St. John said, we have to contend with three main enemies: our own wounded flesh, the devil and the world corrupted by our own sin.

But the most important reason why we should always forgive is, I believe, the fact that forgiving others likens us with God, with Christ, who is the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity. Forgiving is the ultimate act of love which is the very essence of God and which is also intended for us since we are supposed to be God’s image and likeness.

Thus, we have to learn to always be forgiving of others, no matter how undeserving we feel they are of forgiveness. That’s how God forgave us. He took the initiative. He offered forgiveness and continues to do so if only to bring us back to him.

The awareness of this truth should also help us to develop the attitude to forgive one another as quickly as possible, since that is the only way we can learn to love. When we find it hard to forgive others, it is a clear sign that we are full of ourselves, are self-righteous, proud and vain.

We have to continually check on our attitude towards others because today’s dominant culture is filled precisely by the viruses of self-righteousness, that feeling that we are superior to others, etc. We have to do a constant battle against that culture that undermines our duty to always be forgiving.