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SM Investments Corporation (SM Investments), the flagship of the Sy-led SM group, is optimistic about the Philippines’ growth momentum, reaffirming its commitment to the economy’s future.
In recent interviews on CNBC and Bloomberg, SM Executive Vice President for Treasury, Finance, and Planning Erwin G. Pato highlighted SM Investments’ confidence in the country’s growth trajectory.
He emphasized that the group’s synergized investments in retail, property, and financial services will continue to contribute to the consumption-driven growth of the Philippines.
Meanwhile, SMIC and subsidiary SM Prime Holdings Inc. is staying on its toes so it can tap its $3.0 billion Multi-Issuer European Medium Term Note (EMTN) Programme whenever the need arises.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firms said SMIC SG Holdings Pte. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SMIC, and SMPHI SG Holdings Pte. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SM Prime, have jointly updated their $3.0 billion EMTN Programme.
“This EMTN Programme will allow SMIC and SMPH to tap the offshore bond market to fund their continued growth and expansion,” the firm said.
Most of the updates to the EMTN program consisted of 2024 figures which were recently announced by the companies, said SM officials through a spokesperson.
They noted that, this exercise is “not tied to any planned issuance but allows SM to be nimble (when it decides to)—which is important in volatile markets.”
Last July 2024, SM priced a $500 million drawdown from its EMTN program, now listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited. The issuance, which was 3.2 times oversubscribed, with final demand reaching $1.6 billion, marked SM’s largest offshore bond issuance since 2014.
The SM group also recently announced a ₱60-billion share buyback program, which is touted as the largest in Philippine corporate history. This initiative reflects SM’s positive outlook on the country’s economic future.
SM’s decision to repurchase shares worth USD1 billion signals the company’s belief in its value appreciation and the continued growth of the Philippine economy.
“We're having this buyback because we believe in our company and its growth potential. We believe that growth in the Philippines will continue to be consumption-driven,” Pato added.
He noted that, “70 percent of our gross domestic product (GDP) is consumption-driven, and our business is right within that footprint. Our offerings in retail, integrated property development, and financial services will continue to be key players in this consumption-driven growth.”
SM Investments’ consolidated net income showed a seven percent increase in 2024, rising to ₱82.6 billion from ₱77.0 billion in 2023.
Meanwhile, SM Retail Inc., the group’s retail arm, posted a net income of ₱20.9 billion, up from P19.9 billion in the previous year.
“We’re a proxy of the Philippine economy because of our scale and the communities we serve. With lowering interest rates, we believe this will help our macroeconomics and could lead our economic managers to achieve our inflation rate within the twp percent to four percent range. If that happens, it suggests a strong tailwind for the consumer story,” said Pato.
As one of the country’s leading property developers, SM Prime Holdings, Inc., the group’s property arm, is earmarking ₱100 billion this year for the development of its malls, residences, offices, hotels and convention centers.
This investment is driven by expectations of sustained growth in consumer demand and corporate activity.
