THE Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) fully awarded P15 billion in Treasury Bills (T-bills) as rates moved sideways amid concerns that the Duterte administration would impose tighter restrictions after health officials flagged rising cases of the Delta variant of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (Covid-19).
Still, investors flocked to the auction last Monday, which ended up almost thrice oversubscribed as total bids reached P43 billion.
National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters rates “moved sideways amidst growing concerns on possible stricter restriction.”
On Sunday, the Department of Health reported that 55 more Delta variant cases in the country have been detected, raising the total cases of the said variant to 119.
When asked how the Treasury’s borrowing program for August looks like amid the threat posed by Delta variant, De Leon said they still observe strong liquidity in the market.
“Liquidity still very much around looking for home,” she said.
The 91-day T-bills fetched an average rate of 1.05 percent, sliding by 3.2 basis points from 1.082 percent in the previous auction. The tenor attracted tenders of P18.327 billion, more than thrice the P5-billion offer.
Meanwhile, the 182-day T-bills’ average rate capped at 1.407 percent, inching up by 0.6 basis points from 1.401 percent previously. Total bids for the security stood at P13.75 billion, more than twice the P5-billion offer.
As for the 364-day T-bills, its average rate settled at 1.638 percent. This was slightly higher by 0.9 basis points from 1.629 percent previously. Bids for the tenor reached P10.95 billion, double the P5-billion offer.
For July, the Treasury has set to borrow P235 billion from the local debt market, slightly bigger than the P215 billion it programmed in June.
This year, the national government programmed to borrow a total of P3.1-trillion, of which around 75 percent is expected to be raised through domestic sources.
The outstanding debt of the national government as of end-May this year has already ballooned to a record P11.07 trillion, up by 13 percent from P9.795 trillion as of end-2020.
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