Bond issues push up domestic borrowings to P5.45 trillion

MANILA, Philippines — The national government’s outstanding debt rose to P5.45 trillion as of end-February following the issuance of retail Treasury bonds (RTBs) during the month, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported yesterday.

According to the latest data from the BTr, outstanding government debt increased by 6.36 percent, or P326 billion, to P5.45 trillion as of end-February  from P5.12 trillion a month ago.

BTr data showed the bulk, or P4.92 trillion, of the amount was raised through the issuance of Treasury bonds.

Further broken down, the Treasury said outstanding three-year securities amounted to P153.52 billion as of end-February. Five-year debt papers amounted to P291.51 billion, while seven-year bonds reached P460.72 billion.

Outstanding 10-year debt notes also reached P533.3 billion by the end of February, while 20-year and 25-year papers amounted to P420.33 billion and P235.98 billion, respectively.

The BTr said the outstanding RTBs also rose to P1.82 trillion as of end-February from P1.57 trillion in the previous month.

In addition, outstanding benchmark bonds totaled P909.3 billion by the end of last month. Onshore dollar bonds and “premyo bonds” also reached P25.45 billion and P4.96 billion, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Treasury said outstanding Treasury bills amounted  to P533.54 billion as of end- Feb. 

About P121.5 billion of the amount was sourced from the issuance of 91-day securities, while another P142.45 billion came from the sale of 182-day debt notes. Outstanding one-year T-bills also amounted to P269.59 billion.

The Philippine government borrows from both domestic and external lenders to plug the expected deficit in its budget, which is capped at 3.2 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) this year.

Last month, the national government was able to successfully raise P310.8 billion from the issuance of three-year retail treasury bonds, the highest volume recorded for any of its retail offering.

Of the amount, P250 billion came in the form of new investments, and P60.8 billion in switch tender offers. This was also more than 10 times larger than the P30 billion target volume for the issuance.

The debt papers, which will mature in 2023, were sold at a coupon rate of 4.375 percent.

The RTB issuance is part of the government’s borrowing program, which is expected to increase to P1.4 trillion this year.

Economic managers said 75 percent or P1.047 trillion of the total borrowing program is expected to be sourced locally, while the remaining P353.2 billion will come from foreign creditors.