The Bureau of the Treasury reported that the national government has spent over three times on debt payments in the first month of the year due to significant amortization obligations.

In January 2024, the government's debt servicing expenses totaled P158.9 billion, a substantial 232 percent increase from P47.83 billion in the previous year, the Treasury data showed.

These payments cover both the interest charges and the repayments of the principal amount borrowed by the government over time.

Based on Treasury data, this huge increase was mainly due to a rise in principal payments from P861 million to P84.68 billion year-on-year.

The majority of the amortization payments, amounting to P84.54 billion, were directed towards foreign creditors, with local banks receiving only P139 million.

On the other hand, interest payments in January increased by 58 percent to P74.22 billion from P46.97 billion in the previous year.

Of this amount, domestic interest payments accounted for P48.82 billion, while foreign interest payments totaled P25.4 billion.

The government grappled with a significant increase in debt payments as its total debt obligations neared the P15 trillion threshold.

Recording an eight percent surge, the government's total debt increased to P14.79 trillion in January 2024 from P13.698 trillion in the same month of the previous year.

This upward trajectory continued from December 2023, with a 1.2 percent increase from P14.616 trillion.

The rise in debt levels was primarily fueled by domestic borrowing and the peso's depreciation against foreign currencies.