PH records net inflows of hot money in August

Foreign portfolio investments, commonly referred to as "hot money," registered net inflows of $533.95 million in August, according to data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Monday.

The substantial net inflows resulted from gross inflows of $1.37 billion and gross outflows of $836.78 million for the month. While the net inflows reflect a positive trend, the BSP noted that registered investments dropped 43.7% compared to $2.4 billion recorded in July.

In August, 51.2% of the registered investments were directed towards Philippine Stock Exchange-listed securities, with a focus on banks, transportation services, holding firms, real estate, and food and beverage sectors. The remaining 48.8% of investments were allocated to peso government securities.

The primary sources of these investments were Singapore, the United States, the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, and Malaysia. Meanwhile, gross outflows for August reached $212.54 million, down 20.3% from the previous month's $1.04 billion.

The BSP reported that the U.S. continued to be the top destination for outflows, receiving $436.33 million or 52.1% of the total outward remittances.

For the year-to-date period from January to August, the Philippines has seen net inflows of $1.9 billion in foreign investments, representing a remarkable 542.9% increase from $310.7 million during the same timeframe last year. This trend highlights the country's growing appeal to foreign investors despite global economic uncertainties.