THE national government’s (NG) outstanding debt for May this year amounted to P7.915 trillion, increasing by 15.8 percent from the P6.832 trillion recorded in the same month for 2018, data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.
Based on BTr data, the government’s outstanding debt for May of P7.915 trillion was also higher by 1.7 percent compared to the P7.786 trillion reported for April, with the increase being attributed to the net issuances of both domestic and foreign loans and foreign-exchange fluctuations.
“Of the total stock, 33.6 percent were sourced from external markets while 66.4 percent were borrowed domestically,” the BTr said.
Broken down, domestic debt amounted to P5.256 trillion while external debt accounted for P2.659 trillion of the total outstanding debt for the month.
Domestic debt for the month rose by 18.8 percent compared to the P4.424 trillion recorded in May 2018, and showed a 1-percent uptick compared to the April 2019 level of P5.205 trillion.
“The higher level for May was caused by net issuance of government securities amounting to P50.95 billion, which added to the P0.06 billion revaluation of onshore dollar bonds due to peso depreciation,” the BTr said.
The government’s external debt for May this year of P2.659 trillion also posted an increase of 10.4 percent compared to the P2.408 trillion reported in the same month for 2018, and also posting a growth of 3 percent compared to the April 2019 level of P2.581 trillion.
“For the month, higher external debt can be attributed to the effect of currency fluctuations of both the United States dollar and third-currency denominated debt amounting to P6.14 billion and P10.09 billion, respectively,” the BTr added.
Under the government’s external debt in securities, US dollar bonds accounted for P1.344 trillion, euro bonds at P43.729 billion, Japanese yen bonds at P122.567 billion, Chinese yuan bonds at P29.954 billion and peso global bonds at P129.679 billion.
“At the same time, net availment of foreign loans amounted to P61.48 billion including €750 million in eurobonds as part of the NG’s effort to diversify funding sources for infrastructure investment and human capital development,” the BTr said.
The government’s total guaranteed obligations for the month amounted to P486.158 billion, showing a reduction of 1.2 percent from the P492.296 billion recorded in May 2018, but posting an increase of 0.7 percent from the April 2019 level of P482.982 billion.
Broken down, domestic guaranteed debt accounted for P247.436 billion, while external guaranteed debt comprised P238.722 billion of the total for the month.
Domestic guaranteed debt posted an increase of 26.9 percent from the P194.939 billion recorded last year, as well as an increase of 25.1 percent compared to the April 2019 level of P197.724 billion.
The government’s external guaranteed debt also posted a decrease of 19.7 percent from the P297.357 billion level in May 2018, and a decline of 16.3 percent compared to the April 2019 level of P285.258 billion.