Net 'hot money' $1.19B as of Sept. 17, says BSP

Foreign portfolio investments or hot money totaled $6.45 billion as of Sept. 17, up by 51 percent from the same period last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported this weekend. This enabled portfolio funds to flow inward on a net basis of $1.19 billion or 14 times more than the year earlier net inflows of $89 million. The gross outflow of hot money, however, increased to $5.26 billion as of September 17 from $4.82 billion in the same period last year, the BSP noted. The BSP said that foreign funds in the form of hot money continued to enter emerging markets including the Philippines. The flow of foreign portfolio is helping the BSP expand the gross international reserves to more than $49 billion, BSP Gov. Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a statement. —JE/VS, GMANews.TV