attentive to incoming data, especially on consumption, which point to a pick - up in growth this quarter. 2 in particular, consumer expenditures rose a strong 0. 6 percent in april, and auto sales edged higher in may. these are encouraging signs, but the data relevant for second - quarter growth are still relatively sparse. in general, demand growth in recent quarters has benefited from a relatively strong household sector – buoyed by a recovering labor market, reduced oil prices, and low interest rates – and has been pulled down by weak business investment and net exports. indeed, consumption and housing investment can more than account for the 2 percent increase in gdp over the past four quarters. by contrast, business investment and net exports together subtracted ¼ percentage point. the rise in the dollar and decline in foreign growth reduced demand for american exports, as well as profits and investment at u. s. firms, which were also adversely affected by declines in the price of oil. over the twelve months ending in april, manufacturing output increased only 0. 4 percent, while total industrial production, which also includes the drilling for, and extraction of, oil and gas, fell 1. 1 percent. although the most recent indicators suggest that weakness in investment and net exports has persisted into the current quarter, if the easing in financial conditions since mid - february and the recent firmness in oil prices were to continue, along with stabilization of the dollar, business investment and exporters would benefit. risks to the outlook of course, there are risks to the projection that future gdp growth will be strong enough to deliver progress on inflation and employment. most immediately, there is important uncertainty surrounding the united kingdom ’ s june 23 “ brexit ” referendum on whether to leave the european union ( eu ). the international monetary fund has noted that a vote in favor of brexit could unsettle financial markets and create a period of uncertainty while the relationship between the united kingdom and the eu is renegotiated. although the economic effects of this uncertainty and the costs of adjusting to altered trade and financial ties are difficult to quantify, we cannot rule out a significant adverse reaction to such an outcome in the near term, such as a substantial jump in financial risk premiums. because international financial markets are growth in gross domestic income ( gdi ) has not slowed as much as gdp growth recently. however, the average of gdp and gdi growth has still slowed recently from an average annual rate of 2 - 1 / 2

nestor a espenilla, jr : committed speech by mr nestor a espenilla, jr, governor of bangko sentral ng pilipinas ( bsp, the central bank of the philippines ), at the signing of the memorandum of agreement between the bangko sentral ng pilipinas and the philippine payments management, inc. ( ppmi ), manila, 12 january 2018. * * * fellow members of the monetary board, antonio s. abacan and felipe m. medalla, chairman of philippine payments management, inc. ( pmmi ), mr. justo ortiz, ppmi board members ; guests and leaders of the payments industry ; e - peso team ( led by mr. mert tangonan ) ; fellow bspers, ladies and gentlemen, a very good morning to all of you. in today ’ s programme, this part – this message – is identified as “ the keynote address ”... there are various definitions of “ keynote ”... with its main purpose being, “ to arouse interest, unity, and enthusiasm in a group. ” but there is no lack of interest, unity and enthusiasm here. there is, and has been... since the launch of the nrps initiative in december 2015... great commitment to the vision of creating an inter - operable ecosystem supporting fluid electronic fund transfers and payments from one account to another. it was only on august 30 last year that philippine payments management was incorporated... from then until this day, there was, no doubt detailed preparation, collaboration and discussions between us... we know that all great and worthy goals are reached in sure, purposeful and determined steps. we at the monetary board and the bangko sentral thank ppmi for taking yet another step with us, manifested by the earlier signing of our memorandum of agreement. thank you for being here today, not only in your individual capacities as distinguished executive officers of the dynamic financial institutions you represent... not in only in your impressive roles as members of the executive committee of the bankers association of the philippines... but as members of the board of the philippine management, inc.... as a collegial body... as chief stewards of a modern, responsive and globally - competitive philippine retail payment system. the signing of our memorandum of agreement marks certain mutual recognitions and binds us each, to worthy undertakings. on our part, the signing of the moa cement