this but 40 % of our budget goes to social services. our growth story has been supported by structural and policy reforms in the economy for around three decades. these reforms enable growth by expanding the role of market forces in key sectors of the economy ; encouraging investments and private sector activity ; removing bottlenecks to doing business and investments in the country ; and strengthening the country ’ s fiscal position and the financial sector. these, and other structural reforms in the pipeline, will continue to play a significant role in propelling the economy toward a balanced, sustainable, and inclusive growth. in addition, recently approved legislation — such as the bsp charter amendments, philippine identification system ( philsys ) act, national payment systems act and the gold law — allow us to pursue our mandate with more vigor and in effect, enable us to espouse the interests and uplift the lives of all filipinos. so what is the role of bsp in the philippines ’ growth narrative? our mandate is clear : “ maintain price stability conducive to a balanced and sustainable growth of the economy and employment. ” our objective in the bsp is to protect the real purchasing power of the peso to support conditions for long - term economic growth. with your presence in this annual corporate planning and budgeting process summit, i know you are fully aware of the importance of efficient allocation of resources. as a central banker, i would argue that price stability is closely linked with financial efficiency. if the prices are low and stable, financial planners are better equipped to allocate resources to their most efficient use. lesser price volatilities would also enable us to anticipate risks and plan better. and with our amended bsp charter, we are now in a better position to implement sound policies to promote and maintain price stability, a strong financial system, and a safe and efficient 2 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches payments and settlements system. in terms of price developments, we are on track to achieving our inflation target of 2 to 4 percent for 2019. to give you some context, our june inflation declined to 2. 7 percent from 3. 2 percent in may, the lowest inflation recorded in more than 20 months since august 2017. later this morning, the philippine statistics authority ( psa ) will announce the average percentage of inflation for july. my forecast is that it will settle within the range of 2. 2 – 2. 8 percent. this sits comfortably within the government ’ s target band, in line

amando m tetangco, jr : a tipping point and a rising tide is lifting up the philippine economy remarks by mr amando m tetangco, jr, governor of the central bank of the philippines ( bangko sentral ng pilipinas ), at the philippine economic briefing, central bank of the philippines, makati city, 20 february 2007. * * * thank you rene. ladies and gentlemen, welcome and good afternoon. last year, the government set out to “ make things happen ” and in the end, as you all know, it did. many positive things happened. and while i wish i could be publicly swept up by what former fed chairman alan greenspan famously called " irrational exuberance, " in my button - down role as central bank governor, i have to settle for " rational exuberance " instead! i'll leave any irrational comments to others who feel less constrained … but let me say this … 2006 was a good year, and 2007 promises to be even better. i believe our economy has reached a tipping point and, to mix metaphors, the rising tide will lift up, not capsize, our boat. with some of the most stable macroeconomic fundamentals we have seen in a decade, including a much improved fiscal position, single digit rate of inflation with a downward trajectory – despite volatility in oil prices – a healthy external position, a strong peso and a substantial level of foreign exchange reserves, the rising tide of economic and fiscal reforms paired with sound monetary and external sector policies will continue to lift the boat of the philippine economy. last year, these efforts earned us five credit rating outlook upgrades, double digit growth in portfolio and foreign direct investment and new heights for investor confidence. most importantly, it is a clear sign that we are on our way to achieving further economic progress that will benefit domestic and foreign investors alike. but the tide has not been raised enough to benefit all sectors of our economy. our goal for 2007 is to build on our macroeconomic strengths to allow a broader base of the economy to experience the positive impact of our economic gains. but the government ’ s efforts alone are not enough. as reflected in the theme of this year ’ s economic briefing, ensuring the sustainability of economic momentum is a shared responsibility between the public and private sectors. this collaboration should focus on the exchange of new ideas to propel our economy forward, which is why we have invited business leaders to join us today in an open discussion