National gov’t debt hit P5.76T as of Feb.

MANILA, Philippines—The national government’s debt inched up to P5.757 trillion at the end of February, according to the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr).

On its website, the BTr said the figure as of end-February this year increased by 0.1 percent from end-January’s P5.752 trillion, and was 3-percent higher than the P5.592 trillion recorded at end-February last year.

Domestic liabilities at the end of the first two months went down by a mere 0.01 percent from end-January to P3.828 trillion on the back of “net redemption of government securities and downward revaluation of multi-currency denominated notes brought about by peso appreciation,” the BTr explained.

On a year-on-year basis, debt sourced mainly from the auction of Treasury bills and bonds to local investors rose by 5 percent.

As for external obligations, these went up by 0.3 percent from January to P1.929 trillion because of net availments, which the BTr said were “partially tempered by favorable exchange rate movements that reduced the peso equivalent of US dollar- and third currency-denominated debt.”

Foreign debt, meanwhile, declined by 0.9 percent year-on-year.

At end-February, domestic debt comprised the larger 66 percent of the total debt stock, which the BTr noted was “in line with risk management objectives.”

As for the total national government guaranteed debt, it amounted to a total of P413.6 billion as of end-February, down 0.9 percent from the end-January level as well as 12.8-percent lower year-on-year.

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