The recent investment grade rating upgrade of S&P Global Ratings of the Philippines to “BBB+” from “BBB” should convince the Senate to pass the TRABAHO Bill that aims to reform the corporate income tax system in the country, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said Friday.
He said the congressional passage of the law overhauling taxation was among the top factors cited by the debt watcher in assigning the country’s highest investment grade ever.
Dominguez said the congressional approval of the first CTRP package—the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law—was cited by S&P as among the key strengths that led it to raise the Philippines’ long-term sovereign credit rating from BBB to BBB+ with a “stable” outlook, which is just a step away from an ‘A’ rating that is accorded only to the world’s most stable economies.
S&P also said the passage of the rest of the CTRP packages could lead to another credit rating upgrade, prompting Dominguez to say that President Duterte’s economic team would work on possibly getting a higher “A” rating in two years.
