Author : Editor
In accordance with the Monetary Board policy decision to reduce policy rates during its January 19 meeting, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) rediscount rate for loans under the peso rediscount facility has also been reduced.
In a statement, the BSP said that the peso rediscount rate has been set at 4.25 percent for all maturities, effective Tuesday.
This is based on the applicable BSP overnight reverse repurchase rate per Circular 679 dated February 1, 2010. The rediscounting availment is a standing credit facility provided by the BSP to help banks liquefy their position by refinancing the loans they extended to their clients.
It is a privilege of a qualified bank to obtain loans or advanced from the central bank using the eligible papers of its borrowers as collateral.
Commercial, thrift and rural banks have availed themselves of lower rediscounting loans last year amid ample liquidity in the system.
Data from the BSP showed that the level of availments of rediscounting loans under the peso rediscounting facility went down by 45 percent to reach P27.372 billion compared with the P49.764-billion availment during the same period in 2010. Of the total loans, 64.8 percent or P17.73 billion went to commercial credits; 6.4 percent or P1.75 billion to agricultural and industrial credits; and 28.8 percent or P7.88 billion to other credits consisting of capital expenditures, other services and permanent working capital, among others.
Under the foreign currency loan facility, aggregate dollar availments of 10 commercial banks for 2011 hit $207 million benefiting 33 exporters. This represents a 146.4-percent increase in availments compared to the $84 million grants for the same period last year. There was no yen-denominated availments last year.
Source : manilatimes.net
