The total outstanding debt of the national government in April reached P15.02 trillion, marking a rise of P91.50 billion or 0.61 percent from March 2024.
The Bureau of the Treasury attributed the increase to net financing of the government and the effects of local currency depreciation on foreign-currency-denominated debt.
Domestic debt accounted for 68.6 percent of total debt while foreign debt had a 31.4 percent share. The government had, through the years, skewed borrowings toward the local debt market to limit potential shocks from sharp depreciation of the peso against foreign currencies.
In April, domestic debt reached P10.31 trillion, up by P31.01 billion compared to March. The increase was fueled by a net issuance of government securities totaling P27.23 billion and the impact of peso depreciation on foreign-currency-denominated domestic debt, amounting to P3.78 billion. Year-to-date, domestic debt has grown by P290.57 billion or 2.90 percent, with a year-on-year growth of P850.66 billion or 9 percent.
External debt of the National Government stood at P4.71 trillion, representing an increase of P60.49 billion or 1.3 percent from March. Despite a net repayment of P32.91 billion in foreign loans, the depreciation of the peso caused a P109.31 billion increase in the local valuation of US dollar-denominated debt. This was partially offset by a P15.91 billion decline due to the peso’s gain against other foreign currencies. External debt has increased by P110.38 billion or 2.4 percent from December 2023 and by P255.42 billion or 5.7 percent year-on-year.
The National Government’s guaranteed obligations rose by P10.02 billion in April from March, reaching P356.06 billion. This increase was driven by the net availment of domestic guarantees totaling P7.54 billion and the impact of peso depreciation on foreign-currency-denominated guarantees, amounting to P3.80 billion. However, third-currency adjustments against the US dollar reduced this increase by P1.32 billion.
