Philippine cbank has room to further ease policy, governor says

MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippine central bank has room to ease monetary policy, its governor said on Thursday, following this week’s data showing annual inflation stayed within its 2% to 4% target range in 2024.

“There’s still some room to ease,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli Remolona said at a Rotary Club event.

The Philippines reached its 2% to 4% inflation target for the first time since 2021 last year, even as the pace of consumer price increases quickened for a third straight month in December to 2.9%, above economists’ expectations.

Remolona said uncertainties concerning U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s trade policies pose challenges to inflation.

CNN reported on Wednesday that Trump is considering declaring a national economic emergency to provide legal justification for a series of universal tariffs on allies and adversaries.

Trump’s proposed tariffs, which include tariffs of 10% on global imports and around 60% on Chinese goods, and plans to deport some immigrant, may stoke inflation, fuelling expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will slow rate cuts.

But Remolona said the BSP’s policy direction is not dependent on what the Fed does.

The BSP cut its key interest rate by 25 basis points for a third time in December to 5.75%, but flagged that further easing this year might come in “baby steps” as inflation remained a concern.