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Overseas news
China’s trade surplus surpassed $1 trillion in the first 11 months of 2025. This was mostly due to strong non‑US exports, which happened amid high US tariffs.
A trade surplus is what happens when a country exports more than it imports in a certain period. This is often seen in countries with strong manufacturing and/or agricultural sectors.
In Japan, inflation-adjusted real wages fell 0.7% in October despite a 2.6% regular pay rise. This adds inflationary pressure as the Bank of Japan meets on policy this month.
“Real wage” refers to the amount that a person receives from his employment (also known as the nominal wage), adjusted by the inflation rate. It is given as a local currency amount.
Local developments
The Philippines’ gross international reserves (GIR) climbed to $111.08 billion in November. This figure, which was boosted by record gold holdings, is the highest in over 1 year.
GIR is defined as a country’s foreign exchange holdings, special drawing rights, reserve position in the IMF, and gold at the end of a given period, expressed as a US dollar value. The higher these reserves are, the more resilient and flexible that nation can be when the market is volatile.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said that national government’s debt service bill fell by 69.7% year‑on‑year in October to finish at $65.78 billion. This was due to lower amortization payments.
Debt servicing refers to the money needed for paying the principal and interest on a loan for a certain period. When interest rates aren’t fixed for the entire term, the debt servicing can change significantly.
In addition, Philippine banks’ gross non-performing loan (NPL) ratio rose slightly to 3.33% in October from 3.31% in September. This was according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
An NPL ratio indicates how much of a bank’s loans are considered “bad,” which can mean impaired, in doubt or litigation, or have signs that foreclosure of collateral will be necessary for full repayment.
The latest news doesn’t have strong hints of where the markets are headed. While waiting for big changes, you may want to continue following your strategy if it has still been working for you.
