MANILA - The Philippines recorded a balance of payments (BOP) surplus of $896 million in October, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said on Tuesday.

The latest figure is much higher than the $502 million registered by the BSP in the previous month.

BSP Governor Amando Tetangco said this year's BOP surplus could rise to between $4 billion and $5 billion compared to the BSP's original estimate of a $700-million surfeit. The central bank said this would be driven mainly by strong remittance inflows.

The BSP now sees a 4% growth in remittances this year, higher than its initial flat growth estimate. With Reuters