Philippines Govt. Borrowings Surge in June on Global Bond Sale

MANILA, Philippines — The Marcos administration’s gross borrowings more than doubled in June, driven by higher domestic debt and a global bond sale, bringing the first-half total to P1.82 trillion, data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed. Total gross borrowings skyrocketed by 119.5 percent to P579.57 billion in June from P263.99 billion in the same month last year and by more than five times from May’s P108.03 billion. Domestic gross borrowings surged by 104.7 percent to P342.98 billion in June, making up 59.2 percent of the overall gross borrowings for the month. This was composed of P182.54 billion in short-dated Treasury bills and P160.44 billion in fixed-rate Treasury bonds. External borrowings, meanwhile, more than doubled to P236.59 billion in June, lifted by the $2.5-billion (P153.9 billion) global bond sale for 2026. Apart from the global bonds, the government secured P61.28 billion in program loans and P22.22 billion in project loans. For the first half of the year, total gross borrowings rose by 14.4 percent to P1.82 trillion from P1.59 trillion a year ago. Likewise, foreign debt jumped by 35.4 percent to P544.80 billion, while domestic borrowings inched up by 7.4 percent to P1.28 trillion as of end-June. Two global bond issuances, a $2.75-billion sale in January and a $2.5-billion sale in June, accounted for the bulk of external financing in the first semester. Meanwhile, fixed-rate T-bonds made up nearly 80 percent of the total domestic borrowings, amounting to P1.02 trillion as of end-June. Under the 2026 Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing, the government has a P2.68-trillion borrowings target – P2.05 trillion from domestic sources and P627.1 billion from external financing. A revised BESF document reflecting the updated borrowing program is being prepared. Information Source: Philstar Business