Gov’t debt up 5% to P5.59 T

MANILA, Philippines - The outstanding debt of the government rose five percent in January as the Aquino administration continued to borrow to help meet its expenditure requirements.

In a report, the Bureau of Treasury said the country’s debt stock reached P5.59 trillion in the first month of the year or P259.27 billion more than the P5.33 trillion recorded a year ago.

Of the outstanding liabilities, 65 percent or P3.62 billion was accounted for by debt incurred from the domestic market. This marked a year-on-year increase of 6.1 percent.

Domestic borrowings are done mainly through the sale of Treasury bills and bonds during weekly auctions held by the BTr.

Foreign borrowings accounted for the balance of 35 percent or P1.97 trillion, which was 2.7 percent higher than the P1.92 trillion registered a year earlier.

Foreign borrowings mainly comprise loans obtained from development lenders which include the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Total guaranteed debt, on the other hand, amounted to P479 billion, 1.6 percent lower than the P487.28 billion posted in end-January 2013. Domestic guaranteed obligations declined 8.8 percent to P131.43 billion.

Month-on-month, total debt deceased 1.5 percent from P5.68 trillion last December.

Last year, the ratio of debt to gross domestic product ratio fell to 49.21 percent from 2012’s 51.5 percent.  This was the first time that the government recorded a debt-to-GDP ratio below 50 percent, further boosting the country’s fiscal position.