The Philippines has stood out as one of the most stable emerging markets in Asia in the past 16 months – the peso did not drop against the US dollar, as in the case of other Asian currencies, and the country did not experience large capital outflows as a result of the US Federal Reserve rate rise in late 2015.
Much of this was due to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Philippines' central bank, which managed capital flows efficiently, kept inflation and the currency in check, and raised interest rates as far back as 2014. This strong performance means Amando Tetangco, the BSP governor, is now free to set his own monetary policy without having to follow global trends.
