The National Government’s (NG) outstanding debt rose to a record-high P12.79 trillion at the end of June, beating the previous high of P12.76 trillion in April. Preliminary data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed outstanding debt inched up by 2.4% from end-May’s P12.49 trillion “due to the net issuances of domestic and external […]
Tag: debt
BDO shares take a hit after Udenna unit debt default mess
INVESTORS remained upbeat on BDO Unibank, Inc. last week after it issued a debt default notice on an Udenna Corp. subsidiary. Data from the Philippine Stock Exchange showed P1.962-billion worth of 16.819 million BDO shares were traded from July 25 to 29, making it the most actively traded issue last week. Shares in BDO finished […]
BSP upgrades debt management system
THE BANGKO SENTRAL ng Pilipinas (BSP) has enhanced its external debt monitoring and analysis by shifting to the latest version of the Debt Management and Financial Analysis System (DMFAS). “The DMFAS 6 has strengthened security to ensure data integrity and confidentiality and an enhanced user experience and navigation. It also offers enhanced analytical and managerial […]
PH total debt slightly declines to P12.50 trillion in May
THE Philippine government’s total outstanding debt settled at P12.50 trillion as of the end of May, 2.1 percent lower compared to the previous month, the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) reported Friday.BTr said the decrease was due to the repayment of provisional advances from the central bank.Out of the total debt stock, 30.7 percent was sourced […]
Diokno does not favor tax hikes to tackle debt
Philippine central bank governor Benjamin E. Diokno, who takes on a new role as finance secretary next month, said on Friday he does not favor raising taxes even as the incoming government is set to inherit a huge pile of debt. Mr. Diokno, who is President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr.’s choice to lead the […]
Gov’t debt hits record P12.03T
The National Government’s outstanding debt hit a record P12.03 trillion at the end of January after it got another zero-interest loan from the central bank and borrowed locally, according to data from the Treasury bureau. The end-January debt level rose by 16.5% from a year earlier and by 2.6% from December. About 70% of the […]
Century Properties board clears P6-B debt program
Century Properties Group, Inc. has approved a P6-billion debt securities program, of which half of the amount will make up the first tranche including an oversubscription option. The property developer and manager told the stock exchange on Friday that the initial tranche of its debt program would be a a five-year fixed rate of retail […]
External debt at end of Sept. up 4.7% quarter on quarter
EXTERNAL DEBT held by the Philippines rose 4.7% from a quarter earlier at the end of September, with the government continuing to borrow to fund its pandemic mitigation measures. According to preliminary data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) late Friday, external debt was $105.929 billion at the end of the third quarter, […]
Fitch cites potential credit rating cut
By Jenina P. Ibañez, Senior Reporter Rising public debt could lead to a credit rating downgrade for the Philippines in the next few years, Fitch Ratings said. The rating company would consider the country’s public debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio in the medium term, especially as finances in the Asia Pacific improve, it said in a note on Friday. […]
NG debt hits P11.9 trillion as of end-September
By Jenina P. Ibañez, Reporter The national government’s outstanding debt rose to P11.9 trillion as of the end of September as the peso depreciated against the US dollar, preliminary data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed. The end-September debt level was 27.2% higher than last year’s figure, and was 2.41% higher than […]
Peso strengthens as dollar takes hit from US debt ceiling impasse
THE PESO appreciated on Monday as the debate on the proposed US debt ceiling dragged on, affecting the dollar. The local unit closed at P50.70 per dollar on Monday, gaining nine centavos from its P50.79 on Friday, based on the Bankers Association of the Philippines’ data. The peso opened Monday’s session at P50.74 versus the […]
National Gov’t debt hits P11.6 trillion at end of August
THE National Government’s outstanding debt rose to P11.64 trillion at the end of August, with the new lockdown compelling the government to borrow more from the debt market, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said Thursday. According to preliminary BTr data, the end-August debt level was up 0.28% from a month earlier. It was up […]
July government debt hits record P11.6T as state taps local and dollar bond markets
THE NATIONAL Government’s outstanding debt grew further to P11.61 trillion as of the end of July following a dollar bond issue and further tapping of domestic lenders, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported Tuesday. Preliminary data from the BTr indicate that overall debt rose 4% month on month compared with the level booked at […]
DoF launching online platform for reporting on GOCC obligations
THE DEPARTMENT of Finance (DoF) is set to launch an upgraded online platform for the reporting of debt taken on by government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs). It said in a statement Tuesday that the GOCCs’ Liabilities Reporting and Processing Tool (GLRPT) aims to help the DoF analyze the debt incurred by state-run firms and their […]
S&P says PHL credit rating likely unaffected by rising debt load
S&P GLOBAL RATINGS is expecting a “modest” increase in net general government (GG) debt next year assuming the Philippines needs to deal with further waves of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but such deterioration in debt metrics is unlikely to impact the sovereign rating. In a note issued Monday, the ratings agency projected net GG debt […]
SEC revokes credit firm’s license over debt collection practices
THE SECURITIES and Exchange Commission (SEC) canceled the certificate of authority held by Familyhan Credit Corp. which had allowed it to operate as a lending company after a finding of unfair debt collection practices. In an order dated April 13, the SEC Corporate Governance and Finance Department (CGFD) found the lending firm committed three violations […]
BSP sells P100 billion in 28-day debt
The Philippine central bank raised P100 billion through short-term securities it auctioned off on Friday, as rates dropped after the government finished its dollar bond sale. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) fully awarded the 28-day bills it offered from total bids worth P158.2 billion, making the offer nearly two times oversubscribed. The demand was 17% higher than P135.74 billion in total tenders last week. The short-term debt fetched an average rate of 1.812% from 1.816% at the previous auction. Investors sought rates from 1.78% and 1.824%, lower than last week’s 1.8-1.835%. The rates corrected on Friday after rising for four straight weeks, Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. said in a Viber message. He said players had factored in the recent offshore bond issuance by the government, where it sold $3 billion via its dual-tranche offering of dollar-denominated bonds. This meant there is less pressure for the government to raise more funds locally for the meantime to finance the budget deficit, he added. The Philippines sold $2.25 billion via 25-year dollar bonds on Tuesday and $750 million in 10.5-year notes. This marked the country’s third offshore bond offering this year, after the $2.5 billion worth of euro-denominated notes it sold in April and $500 million yen-denominated Samurai bonds issued in March. The government is planning to raise $7 billion from the international debt market this year to help fund its budget deficit that is expected to widen to 9.3% of economic output. Mr. Ricafort said the higher demand showed there is excess liquidity in the financial system. — Beatrice M. Laforga
Q1 external debt declines
The country’s outstanding foreign debt fell by 1.5% or $1.4 billion to $97 billion at the end of March from end-December, after the National Government redeemed maturing bonds and local banks settled their obligations, according to the Philippine central bank. Year-on-year, the country’s debt stock rose by $15.6 billion after borrowings worth $13.5 billion by […]
PHL debt service bill seen as manageable even if rates rise
EMERGING MARKETS including the Philippines are expected to be “quite resilient” in the event interest rates rise, with many countries weighting their government debt in favor of local-currency issues, according to S&P Global Ratings. A stress-test scenario of a 300-basis points rate hike indicated that emerging markets are likely to incur a 1 percentage point […]
DoJ cybercrime group warns vs online lending firms’ unlawful debt collection practices
THE JUSTICE department’s cybercrime team has flagged the unlawful debt collection practices of online lending companies, citing the growing number of reports it has received. In a public advisory on Monday, the Department of Justice–Office of Cybercrime (DoJ-OOC) said various laws prohibit these online firms from accessing the debtor’s phone contacts, posting their personal information, […]