Dollar reserves dip to $104 billion in April

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May 9, 2026 | 12:00am

As peso hits record low

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s foreign exchange buffer fell to its lowest level in 15 months in April, as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) likely tapped reserves to temper peso volatility while the government paid foreign debt obligations, analysts said.

Preliminary data from the central bank showed gross international reserves (GIR) settled at $104.13 billion as of end-April, down by 2.4 percent from $106.64 billion as of end-March.

The reserve buffer was also 1.1 percent lower than the $105.31 billion in April last year. It marked the lowest GIR level since the $103.27 billion recorded in January 2025.

GIR refers to foreign-denominated securities, foreign exchange and other reserve assets, including gold. These reserves help ensure sufficient dollar liquidity to meet the country’s import needs and foreign debt obligations, address currency volatility and provide a buffer against external economic shocks.

Despite the decline, the BSP said the latest GIR level still provides a “robust external liquidity buffer,” equivalent to 6.9 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income. 

The end-April level was also about 3.8 times the country’s short-term external debt based on residual maturity. 

“The drop in April’s GIR likely reflects a combination of forex operations to smooth peso volatility amid a strong dollar, as well as foreign exchange requirements for government external debt servicing,” UnionBank chief economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion said. 

Asuncion said changes in the value of the BSP’s gold holdings and other reserve assets not denominated in dollars could have also pulled reserves lower.

“But reserves remain adequate by standard metrics and continue to provide a solid buffer against external shocks,” he added. 

Based on BSP data, foreign exchange reserves posted the sharpest monthly decline, plunging by 73.4 percent to  Dollar reserves tumble to 15-month low in April

$464.9 million in April from $1.75 billion in March. The figure was also down by 30.8 percent from $672.3 million a year ago. 

Foreign investments, the biggest component of the country’s reserves, fell by 1.1 percent to $79.2 billion from $80.09 billion in March. Compared with the $86.67 billion recorded in April 2025, foreign investments were lower by 8.6 percent.

 Gold holdings also slipped by two percent to $19.78 billion from $20.18 billion a month earlier, as global gold prices corrected in April. However, gold reserves were still higher by 48.3 percent from the $13.34 billion recorded in the same month last year.

RCBC chief economist Michael Ricafort said gold reserves went down in April after world gold prices declined by 1.1 percent. 

Lower foreign exchange reserves could also reflect the BSP’s intervention in smoothening the volatility in the foreign exchange market as the peso slumped to a record low of 61.567 against the dollar on April 29. 

PIDS senior research fellow John Paolo Rivera said the lower GIR reflected BSP intervention, external debt payments and higher import costs, particularly for oil.

 “Elevated global uncertainty and capital flow volatility may have also contributed to reserve drawdowns,” Rivera said. “Despite the decline, current GIR level remains relatively adequate and still provides an important buffer against external shocks.”

 Rivera said reserves could remain under pressure if oil prices stay elevated and global financial conditions remain volatile. 

“Support from remittances, services exports and potential foreign borrowing should help keep the country’s external position manageable,” he said.