The national government’s total debt reached P15.89 trillion as of end-September 2024, up by 2.2 percent from P15.55 trillion in August, the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) said Wednesday.
It attributed the debt increase to net new borrowings, both domestically and internationally.
“Nevertheless, the NG’s strategic focus on local fund raising allows the government to limit external risk exposure to only 31.19 percent of its debt portfolio, while enabling the development of the local bond market and providing Filipinos with quality investment vehicles to grow their savings,” the BTr said.
Data showed that on a year-on-year basis, government debt jumped over P1.6 trillion, or 11.4 percent, from P14.27 trillion.
Domestic debt reached P10.94 trillion as of end-September 2024, a modest increase of 1.3 percent from the previous month.
This was led by P145.11 billion net issuance of new government securities, which was slightly offset by a P460 million decrease in the value of US dollar-denominated securities due to the appreciation of the Philippine peso.
External liabilities reached P4.96 trillion as of end-September 2024. This grew by 4.2 percent from the previous month due to P200.89 billion in net foreign borrowings, including P140.99 billion ($2.5 billion) in new US dollar bond floatation to support general budgetary requirements.
Favorable foreign exchange adjustments contributed a substantial decrease of P2.43 billion in the overall external debt.
Meanwhile, government guaranteed obligations hit P372.86 billion as of end-September 2024, up by 2.4 percent from its end-August 2024 level.
This was driven by the P12.30 billion in new guarantees for the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) and the National Food Authority (NFA) as well as P940.0 million in upward revaluation of third currency-denominated guarantees.
Net repayments of P3.95 billion and P460.0 million downward revaluation of US dollar-denominated guarantees tempered the increase.
“Overall, the Philippine government’s prudent debt management, supported by heavy bias on local funding, contributes to the country’s strong fiscal position and continued resilience amidst global uncertainties,” the BTr said.
