The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) office here is seeking support from local stakeholders in the province for the first publication of the proposed Philippine Beige Book (PBB) this year.
Victorio-III Tingcang, area director of the BSP Tacloban branch, said they have been meeting with government agencies and the private sector ahead of interviews and data gathering from local businesses.
Publishing the PBB aims to provide real-time insights from businesses and industries across regions to complement the central bank’s existing economic reports.
“We are planning to release quarterly sentiment reports to support monetary policy and ensure that the voices of the regions are heard. It’s a new program of BSP. It is more focused on supporting policy,” Tingcang said in an interview Monday.
To advance the initiative, BSP Tacloban met with officials of the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) regional office and the Securities and Exchange Commission Tacloban Extension Office.
During the meeting, DEPDev shared updates on the region’s economic performance, outlook, priority industries, and major infrastructure projects, while SEC Tacloban Extension Office presented data on leading corporations in the region that may serve as key informants for the report.
“We will come up with guide questions. We are more on exploratory for the first two quarters. The goal is to release the publication quarterly before the year ends,” Tingcang said.
The central bank will also coordinate with agencies such as the Department of Trade and Industry and DEPDev to get recommendations on which companies, establishments, or personnel to interview.
“With this Beige Book, we will get comments directly from business establishments. Maybe they have suggestions they can contribute to the policy that BSP will come up with in the future,” Tingcang told the Philippine News Agency.
Tingcang added that, once finalized, the Philippine Beige Book will be made publicly available online, allowing broader access to regional economic information.
DEPDev Eastern Visayas expressed support for the initiative and encouraged BSP Tacloban to present the proposal to the Regional Development Council VIII for endorsement.
Officials said the Beige Book will help provide a more dynamic, region-specific perspective on the country’s economic outlook and strengthen local policy feedback. (PNA)