The Data: Coverage, Periodicity, and Timeliness

Coverage characteristics

Data are disseminated in millions of U.S. dollars on the balance of payments which cover the entire economy of the Philippines.

Data are disseminated for the following: (a) Current Account which consists of export and import of goods and services, income receipts and income payments and net current transfers; (b) Capital Account which consists of net capital transfers and net acquisition of non-produced non-financial assets; (c) Financial Account (excluding reserves) which consists of net direct investment, net portfolio investment, net financial derivatives and net other investment; and (d) transactions in Reserve assets and liabilities (changes in net reserve assets).

The Balance of Payments position (overall balance) is determined by transactions in reserves adjusted by revaluation of reserve assets and reserve-related liabilities as well as monetization of gold. Reserve-related liabilities consist of short-term liabilities of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and use of IMF's Credit facilities.

Export and import of goods are derived by getting the sum of the amounts of general merchandise, goods for processing, repairs on goods, goods procured in ports by carriers, and non-monetary gold. Deducting total import of goods from total export of goods result to net goods balance.

Export and import of services are obtained by adding the transaction amounts of transportation, travel, communication, other business and recreational services, among others. The amount of net services is obtained by deducting services imports from services exports.

Data on the prescribed component of net income receipts can be derived as the difference between income receipts and income payments, which in turn can be derived from the disseminated data as follows:

(1) Income receipts are the sum of the data on inward inflows for compensation of employees and investment income.

(2) Income payments are the sum of the data on outward outflows pertaining to compensation of employees and investment income.

The prescribed data on current transfers is calculated by adding the data on general government and other sectors account.

The change in the treatment of Offshore Banking Units (OBUs) from nonresidents to residents was also implemented in 2001 covering financial transactions, including bond and loan transactions of residents (bank and non-banks) with OBUs.

Beginning with the BOP data for January 2000, the data are compiled in accordance with the methodology set out in the fifth edition of the IMF's "Balance of Payments Manual" (BPM5). Full compliance with the BPM5 definition of residency, particularly with respect to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) was initially achieved with the release of the 2004 BOP. Revisions of the historical database on the BPM5-based series from 1999 to 2005 were completed and released to the public last March 2006.

The data are not seasonally adjusted.

Periodicity

Quarterly:  beginning with the 3^rd quarter 2003 data which was released in December 2003.

Timeliness

Monthly:  until July 2003 data which was released in October 2003. Thereafter, releases of monthly disaggregation are contained in the quarterly BOP report.

Access by the Public

Advance dissemination of
release calendar

An advance release calendar that gives one-quarter ahead notice of the precise release dates is posted on the BSP's Internet website: http://www.bsp.gov.ph/statistics/release_calendar.htm

A regular notice to this effect is published in the following BSP press releases: "Key Statistical Indicators: Daily News Release", "Daily Statistical Indicators", "BSP Weekly Key Statistical Indicators", and the monthly "Selected Philippine Economic Indicators".

Simultaneous release to all
interested parties

The data are released simultaneously to all interested parties by issuing the press release Balance of Payments Developments  to print  and broadcast media through the BSP's Corporate Affairs Office and by posting the data on the following webpages: http://www.bsp.gov.ph/statistics/sdds/sdds.htm,
http://www.bsp.gov.ph/publications/media.asp?id=1039 and
http://www.nscb.gov.ph/sdds/nsdp.asp   

Data are subsequently published at the Selected Philippine Economic Indicators released  at webpage http://www.bsp.gov.ph/statistics/spei/tab1.htm  every 15^th day of the month or, if this falls on a non-working day,  the next business day.

Integrity

Dissemination of terms and
conditions under which
official statistics are
produced, including ...
confidentiality of individual
responses Dissemination of terms and
conditions under which
official statistics are
produced, including those
relating to the confidentiality
of individually identifiable
information

The data are compiled and published under the terms and conditions of the " New Central Bank Act" of 1993 or Republic Act No. 7653.

The  New Central Bank Act:

Section 23 of the Act provides that data on individual firms, other than banks, gathered by the Department of Economic Research (reorganized  into Department of Economic Statistics, Department of Economic Research, and the Center for Monetary and Financial Policy in March 2005) or other units of the BSP shall not be made available to any person or entity outside of the BSP, whether public or private, except under order of the court or under such conditions as may be prescribed by the Monetary Board.

Section 27, meanwhile, provides that personnel of the BSP are prohibited from revealing in any manner,  information relating to the condition or business of any institution subject to supervision or examination by BSP. 

Section 40 mandates the BSP to publish and submit to the President and the Congress not later than 90 days after reference year an annual report with a statistical appendix showing, among others, data on balance of payments of the Philippines.

The Central Bank Act is referred to in the BSP's "Annual Report" and the public may obtain a copy from Ms. Lorean Pangan of the Corporate Affairs Office, Rm. 412, 4th Floor, Five-Storey Bldg. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas  A. Mabini corner P. Ocampo Sr. Streets, Malate, Manila 1004 Philippines Telephone no. (632) 525 2506, fax no. (632) 523 6210; and email address: LPangan@bsp.gov.ph

Identification of internal
government access to data
before release

The National Statistical Coordination Board is given an advance copy of quarterly estimates of the current account with details of factor and non-factor services eight weeks after the end of the reference quarter for the preparation of quarterly estimates of national income accounts.

The "BOP Development Report" and the supporting details on the monthly current account and capital and financial account balances are made available under strict conditions 1 working day prior to release to the public, to the Governor and members of the Monetary Board for notation in its regular meeting which is held every Thursday of the week. The Secretary of Trade and Industry is a member of the Monetary Board. There are no formal announcements to the public of the Monetary Board's prior access. The National Statistical Coordination Board is given an advance copy of quarterly estimates of the current account with details of services and income eight weeks after the end of the reference quarter for the preparation of quarterly estimates of the national income accounts.

The  Balance of Payments Developments report and the supporting details on the quarterly current account and capital and financial account balances, with monthly disaggregation for the current year, are made available, under strict conditions, one working day prior to release to the public, to the Governor and members of the Monetary Board for notation in its regular meeting which is held every Thursday of the week. A Cabinet Secretary serves as a member of the Monetary Board (this position is currently held by the Secretary of the National Economic and Development Authority). There are no formal announcements to the public of the Monetary Board's prior access.

Identification of ministerial
commentary on the occasion of
statistical releases

A press briefing is held by the Governor of the BSP on BOP developments for the quarter after notation of the BOP report by the Monetary Board.

Provision of information
about revision and advance
notice of major changes in
methodology

The data are preliminary when first released. The news release and all publications indicate that data for the most recent period are still preliminary. The date of the last revision is also indicated.

Advance notice of major changes in  methodology is issued through press releases. In addition, footnotes are published in the monthly Balance of Payments table indicating changes in methodology and dates of the last revision.

Quality

Dissemination of
documentation on methodology
and sources used in preparing
statistics

Technical notes on the methodology used in revising the data have been prepared. These notes, in condensed form, are published at the following webpages:  http://www.bsp.gov.ph/statistics/stats_SPEI.htm  of  the Monthly Selected Philippine Economic Indicators  and http://www.bsp.gov.ph/statistics/sdds/sdds.htm.

A concept handbook containing the scope, sources, and methodology used for each of the BOP accounts is made available to the public at the BSP’s Center for Statistical Information.

Copies of these publications are available from the contact persons.  Please see above contact details.

(See also summary methodology)

Dissemination of component
detail, reconciliations with
related data, and statistical
frameworks that support
statistical cross-checks
and provide assurance of
reasonableness

Balance of Payments Developments, quarterly press release.
The Department of Economic Statistics’ (DES) quarterly report on Balance of Payments Developments includes the following tables with component details: (i) the BOP main table and supporting tables on goods, services, income, current transfers, capital account, direct investments, portfolio investment, financial derivatives, other investments, and reserve assets and liabilities of the BSP, for the current year, including comparative levels of the current and past period (ii) tables on exports and imports by major commodity groups, comparative levels of the current and previous year.

Selected Philippine Economic Indicators (SPEI), monthly issue.

Under the External Accounts section of the monthly SPEI, the following tables, with component details, are included:
1. BOP summary and supporting tables, export and import tables by major commodity group, monthly for the current year and annual for the last seven years;
2. Net International Reserves of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, monthly for the current year and immediately past two years;
3. Gross International Reserves of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, monthly for the current year and immediately past two years; and
4. Net Foreign Direct and Portfolio Investments (BOP Concept), cumulative for the current year and annual for the past seven years; and
5. Overseas Filipino Worker's Remittances, by Country and by Type of Worker, monthly for the current year and annual for the past seven years.

The quarterly press release "BOP Developments: xxx (period covered)" publishes a full set of quarterly data with monthly disaggregation on components in summarized format. The complete quarterly, with detailed monthly disaggregrated data on foreign trade, services, income, transfers, direct investment, portfolio investment, financial derivatives, other investment and reserve assets and liabilities are made available at the BSP website and upon request..