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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Gov't debt exceeds P12-T mark

Gov't debt exceeds P12-T mark

Published Mar 4, 2022 01:23 pm

The national government incurred more loans in January, bringing its debt above the P12-trillion mark for the first time, as the Philippines bogged down by prolonged Covid-19 pandemic.

The Bureau of Treasury reported on Friday, March 4, that the government’s outstanding debt stood at P12.03 trillion as of January 2022, up 16.5 percent or P1.7 trillion compared with P10.327 trillion in the same month last year.

According to the treasury bureau, the increase was driven by more borrowings from both local and foreign creditors.

Of the total debt stock, 69.6 percent were domestically borrowed, while the remaining 30.4 percent were loans sourced abroad.

The treasury bureau said net borrowings resulted in an increase in domestic debt by 14.2 percent to P8.367 trillion from P7.325 trillion at end-January 2021.

The government's foreign debt also jumped 22 percent to P3.558 trillion from a year ago’s P3.001 trillion.

Based on the treasury data, the depreciation of peso against the dollar from 48.076 to 51.135 led to the increase in foreign obligations.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III acknowledged the more than two-year Covid-19 pandemic and its severe economic downturn resulted in a significant increase in government debt.

Dominguez admitted that a high level of government debt stock, now equivalent to 60.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), is not sustainable and should only be for temporary.

The Philippines’ debt-to-GDP ratio was slightly above the 60-percent threshold deemed as manageable for emerging markets.

For this reason, Dominguez said that the next administration should focus on how the government will repay the debt that piled up throughout the pandemic.

On Thursday, the finance chief said the government’s urgent task of outgrowing its pandemic-induced debt is “doable.”

President Duterte’s economic team has already formulated a program to limit the budget deficit and improve the debt-to-GDP ratio. Dominguez said this part of the fiscal consolidation plan that they will turn over to the next administration.

“We are ready to brief all presidential candidates and their economic teams, and we will present to them ideas on how to handle the increasing debt,” Dominguez said.

Related Tags

Carlos G. Dominguez III government debt debt-to-GDP ratio Finance Secretary Bureau of the Treasury
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