GROSS BORROWINGS declined by 24.5% year on year as of end-November, preliminary data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.
In the January-to-November period, total gross borrowings dropped to P2.1 trillion from the P2.78-trillion borrowings in the previous year.
The 11-month gross borrowings represent 95.5% of the P2.2 trillion total borrowing target set by the national government for 2022.
In November alone, gross borrowings surged by 266.7% to P97.9 billion from P26.7 billion in the same month of 2021. However, it was 64.6% lower than the P176.56 billion logged in October.
Domestic gross borrowings surged 357.3% to P75.91 billion in November from P16.6 billion in the same month of 2021.
November saw the net redemption of Treasury bills (T-bills) amounting to P22.33 billion, which was offset by the issuance of fixed-rate Treasury bonds (T-bonds) which raised P98.24 billion.
Meanwhile, foreign gross borrowings reached P21.96 billion during the month, up 117.4% from P10.1 billion a year earlier. This consisted entirely of project loans, with no recorded foreign program loans or bonds.
The government also repaid P35.09 billion to foreign creditors in November.
In the first 11 months of 2022, gross domestic borrowings fell by 28.4% to P1.61 trillion from P2.25 trillion in the previous year.
The government raised P834.48 billion from retail Treasury bonds (RTBs), and P1.14 trillion from fixed-rate T-bonds as of end-November.
Gross external borrowings amounted to P493.61 billion in the 11-month period, down by 6.7% from the P528.8 billion posted in 2021.
Broken down, the BTr raised P234.26 billion from global bonds and P28.55 billion from Samurai bonds. It also recorded P94.2 billion in project loans and P136.6 billion in program loans. The government also repaid P122.76 billion of its outstanding foreign debt.
The government borrows from local and foreign sources in order to fund its budget deficit. The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) last month revised its fiscal deficit projection to 6.9% of gross domestic product (GDP) for 2022.
As of end-November, the National Government’s debt reached a record-high of P13.644 trillion. — L.M.J.C.Jocson
