House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said the A-rating given to the Philippines by Japan-based credit watchdog Rating and Information Inc. (R&I) signifies that the present administration is on course to meet its targets.
“This year’s improved credit standing is an affirmation that the economic and fiscal policy direction of President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ R. Marcos Jr. is on track,” Romualdez said Sunday in a statement.
He added that the President is elated over the rating, which he described as “the highest to date.” R&I had given the country a BBB+ rating last year.
The Speaker linked the positive rating to the country’s 6.3 percent growth rate in the second quarter of this year, which he said aligns with the full-year growth forecast of multilateral lending institutions, ranging from 5.9 percent to 6.2 percent.
“I am confident that we can attain these numbers. But as I said, our countrymen should feel the growth of our economy through help and huge funds for education, health, their needs, and other assistance,” he said.
Romualdez added that the improved credit rating would result in lower borrowing costs for the country and reduced interest payments on loans.
“The money we can save in the national budget for interest payments we can use for more financial assistance to our people. That’s a way for them to feel the economic growth,” he said.
Romualdez also vowed to continue the House’s support of the administration’s economic and prosperity agenda with the necessary legislative measures to sustain economic growth.