Philippine Central Banker Urges Banks to Promote FX Hedging

Philippine banks may have to push harder to convince companies to hedge their foreign exchange exposure as the war in Iran underscores the country’s vulnerability to geopolitical shocks, according to a central banker.

The conflict has led to a higher inflation rate, lower-than-target economic growth, a wider current account deficit and a risk to remittances, said Walter Wassmer, a member of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ policymaking Monetary Board.