Selling GMA's Phippines ain't easy these days

Ayaw na sa atin ng foreign investors:

Three weeks ago, our "high-powered" economic managers, La Gloria's crème de la crème, went on a "roadshow". They went to Hong Kong and Singapore, to London and Washington and New York to drum up interest for investments and financial accommodations to our cash-strapped economy.

Before they left our benighted shores they must have known it wasn't going to be easy - sell the Philippines, that is. After all, a credit rating downgrade from everyone and his mother was just a matter of time. What they did not expect was that verily, fund managers would throw "mud" at them.

In one briefing, a fund manager "lectured" the very proper, very amiable Finance Secretary Juanita Amatong and the rest of her crew on our "lousy" bond issues. The fund manager was upset at the conduct of our last bond offering where we raised money for GMA's government at expense of existing holders of Philippine bonds. We allocated the bulk of our new batch of bonds to "hedge funds" which then took the opportunity to dump their holdings at the earliest possible time, driving down the price of Philippine bonds in the market. Long-term investors were burned. Is this the way you treat long-term and long-time financial partners, he asked.

Singapore-based Government Investment Corporation, one of Asia's largest fund managers and Blue Bay Investments of London virtually shut the door on any future purchase of Philippine bonds. We chose the ups and downs of risky speculation by cavorting with the hedge funds, lowering the hold quality of our debt instruments, then "mud on your face" and goodbye, they chorused.

GMA's economic geniuses might as well have gone to Atlanta, Georgia and wrestled in the mud.