PBB banks on economy’s growth amid competition

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

WITH the expected moderate growth of the economy, Philippine Business Bank (PSE: PBB) believes there are opportunities to grow its resources and profitability for the rest of the year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange last Wednesday, the bank said its net income grew 40.1 percent to P869.2 million in the first six months of 2023 from P620.3 million posted in the same period last year.

PBB President and CEO Roland R. Avante said through the disclosure that “while the competition in the banking industry has been intense,” the prospects of the Philippine economy gives them confidence that its growth for the rest of the year will also be robust.

“This year has been as challenging as expected given the continued impact of the geopolitical situation, which still affects high inflation. With the Philippines projected to be driven by strong domestic demand, the country’s gross domestic product is expected to experience moderate growth,” Avante said.

“This upturn is anticipated to be fueled by robust private consumption, which is fully supported by the recovery of employment, improving consumer sentiments, following the recent lifting of the ‘State of Public Health Emergency’ and consistent inflows of remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs),” he added.

Avante said the country’s growth is expected to reach 6 percent in 2023 due to these strong domestic demands. This is the low-end of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) target of 6 to 7 percent this year.

“PBB sees opportunities to grow its resources and profitability given the foreseen impact on the economy,” Avante said. “PBB continues to work hard to become the bank of choice of

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