Government borrowings rise 40 percent to P174 billion in August

MANILA, Philippines — The Marcos administration ramped up its borrowings by 40 percent to P174 billion in August, with the bulk still coming from the domestic debt market.

Data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed that total borrowings in August reached P174.03 billion, as compared to P124.06 billion in August 2023.

During the month, borrowings from local lenders rose by 42 percent to P167.05 billion from P117.37 billion secured in the same period last year.

The huge chunk or 84 percent of the domestic borrowings at P140 billion was from fixed rate Treasury bonds.

The government also borrowed the remaining P27.05 billion through the issuance of short-term T-bills.

During the same month last year, the government borrowed lesser T-bonds at P110.24 billion and lower T-bills at only P7.14 billion amid higher interest rates.

In terms of external debt, the Treasury slightly inched up its borrowings by five percent to P6.99 billion from P6.68 billion from foreign sources during the month of August.

The entire external financing was made up of various project loans.

For the eight-month period, borrowings jumped by 17 percent to P1.93 trillion from P1.65 trillion sourced in January to August 2023.

As of end-August, domestic borrowings picked up by 32 percent to P1.65 trillion while offshore financing decreased by 28 percent to P282.46 billion.

This means that the government already used up 75 percent of the P2.57-trillion borrowing plan it crafted for the year.

Next year, the Philippines will slightly decrease its borrowing program by a percentage to P2.55 trillion, still in favor of domestic creditors.

Sourcing from the domestic market is part of the administration’s prudent debt management strategy and its initiatives to further develop the domestic capital markets.