The Central Bank of the Philippines published preliminary data showing gross international reserves (GIR) of USD 106.84 billion at end-December 2024, down from USD 108.49 billion at end-November 2024. The GIR level was described as an external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.5 months of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income, and about 3.8 times short-term external debt based on residual maturity. The month-on-month decline mainly reflected the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ net foreign exchange operations, drawdowns of national government deposits with the central bank to pay foreign currency debt obligations, and downward valuation adjustments in gold holdings due to lower international gold prices. Net international reserves (NIR) fell by USD 1.63 billion to USD 106.83 billion from USD 108.46 billion over the same period.