The Philippines’ outstanding debt hit a record P14.10 trillion as of end-May 2023 from P13.91 trillion as of end-April on weaker peso against the US dollar and borrowings incurred by the government to fund its budget deficit, the Bureau of the Treasury said.
“The level of debt grew by P185.40 billion or 1.3 percent from the previous month due to the net issuance of domestic and external debt and the depreciation of the local currency against the US dollar,” the Treasury said in a statement.
It said of the total debt stock, 32 percent was sourced externally, while 68 percent came from domestic borrowings.
Domestic debt amounted to P9.59 trillion, P130.67 billion or 1.4 percent higher, compared to the end-April 2023 level.
“For the month, the increment to domestic debt was primarily accounted for by the net issuance of government securities amounting to P129.11 billion. Moreover, the impact of peso depreciation against the US dollar padded the value of onshore foreign currency-denominated securities by P1.56 billion,” it said.
Domestic debt increased by P380.13 billion or 4.1 percent from the end-December 2022 level.
External debt amounted to P4.51 trillion, P54.73 billion or 1.2 percent higher from the previous month.
“External debt was mainly driven by the net availment of external loans amounting to P10.05 billion and the impact of local-currency depreciation against the US dollar amounting to P59.70 billion,” the Treasury said.
It said third-currency adjustments against the US dollar tempered the value of foreign currency debt by P15.02 billion. External debt increased by P297.56 billion or 7.1 percent from the end-December 2022 level.