2009. the external payments position is expected to remain a source of strength for the economy over the near term. dollar inflows from remittances and foreign investments are expected to remain robust. this should enable us to further build up our cushion of international reserves. on the external sector, our policies will be geared toward : ( 1 ) ensuring sustainability of the country ’ s external debt ; ( 2 ) maintaining a market - determined exchange rate with scope for occasional official action in cases of extreme movements in the peso ; ( 3 ) maintaining a comfortable level of reserves ; and ( 4 ) improving the foreign exchange environment further through forex deregulation. reforms in the financial sector will be geared toward maintaining a strong banking system and a vibrant capital market. the bsp remains committed to strengthening the banking system through structural reforms and speedier disposition of non - performing assets. at the same time, continuing asset clean - up of banks should help spur credit and investments, thereby generating support for more sustainable economic activity in the medium term. other regulatory reforms will be aimed at the further strengthening of corporate governance, risk management, and capitalization through a more effective and efficient enforcement of standards and codes. in particular, prudential regulations shall continue to be aligned with international standards and best practices. to further develop the domestic capital market, the bsp will continue to work actively with other government agencies and the private sector to complete critical market infrastructure that will enhance system integrity and overall market confidence. we will continue to push for the passage of key legislations intended to accelerate the development of the domestic capital market. in particular, we shall push for the implementation of a centralized credit information bureau to improve the quality of financial information to investors, expand private sector access to credit, minimize risks exposure of financial intermediaries, and lower borrowing costs. ladies and gentlemen. on the basis of these policy directions, the outlook for the monetary, external, and banking sectors continues to be favorable. i am now ready to discuss the issues of particular interest to you. thank you.

continues to post double - digit, reflecting sustained demand for loans from various production sectors of the economy. liquidity conditions, while growing at a 3 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches moderate pace, remain sufficient to support economic growth requirements, with the latest ratio at 64. 2 percent for q1 2019. the continued soundness and stability of the philippine banking system also lend strong support to economic growth. philippine banks remain robust, well - funded, and adequately - capitalized. as of end - march 2019, the philippine banking system assets expanded by 11. 0 percent year - onyear ( yoy ) to p17. 0 trillion which approximates the size of the domestic economy. the expansion in the banking system ’ s assets was primarily due to increased lending activities. the observed robust asset growth was supported by expansion in bank branch network to 11, 933 as of end - june 2019. deposit liabilities continue to be the primary funding source of the banking system. these deposits are mostly peso - denominated and sourced from resident individuals and private corporations. meanwhile, banks ’ annualized net profit grew by 8. 8 percent to p189. 0 billion for the period ended march 2019. annualized interest income primarily kept the bottomline robust, growing strongly by 27. 7 percent for the first quarter of the year. with respect to banks ’ capitalization level, the capital adequacy ratios ( cars ) of u / kbs on solo and consolidated bases improved to 15. 1 percent and 15. 8 percent, respectively. as you know, these ratios are well - above the minimum threshold set by the bsp and bis of 10 percent and 8 percent, respectively. the increase is due to the capital build - up being undertaken by the industry in anticipation of further expansion of the credit portfolio and investment activities. liquidity remains sufficient as banks maintain adequate high - quality liquid assets. this favorable confluence of strong growth and a manageable inflation environment allows us to be optimistic. nevertheless, there are still challenges that need to be considered. there is the risk of sluggish global growth. in its july 2019 world economic outlook ( weo ), the imf revised its global growth forecast for 2019 from 3. 3 percent last april to 3. 2 percent. trade tensions between the us and china continue to be at the forefront with both countries raising tariffs on different imported goods. at the same time, brexit - related issues continue to be another source of risk. the