The Marcos Jr. administration still exceeded its planned ₱30-billion borrowing on Monday, April 27,, even as demand softened for short-dated debt papers amid expectations of higher borrowing costs following the benchmark rate increase to 4.5 percent last week.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised ₱36.6 billion during its latest treasury bills (T-bills) auction, surpassing the target amount. This sustained the positive momentum seen since last week’s auction, as the government continued to borrow beyond programmed amounts.

Total bids reached ₱73.5 billion, more than double the amount offered, although this eased from the ₱127.3 billion in demand posted the previous week.

The BTr awarded ₱16.8 billion for 91-day T-bills, exceeding the ₱12-billion offer. Total tenders for this tenor reached ₱36.9 billion, with the average rate inching up to 4.558 percent from 4.542 percent last week.

For 182-day debt papers, the BTr raised ₱12.6 billion, also surpassing the ₱9-billion offer. Bids reached ₱23.2 billion, with the average rate rising to 4.737 percent, up 8.8 basis points (bps) from the previous week’s 4.649 percent.

Meanwhile, the BTr scaled down borrowings through 364-day IOUs, awarding only ₱8.2 billion against its ₱9-billion plan, as demand for the tenor reached ₱13.4 billion. The average rate for one-year T-bills climbed by 13.2 bps to 5.184 percent from 5.052 percent in the previous auction.

PHP Bloomberg Valuation (PHP BVAL) reference rates as of April 27 showed that 91-, 182-, and 364-day T-bills were quoted at 4.547 percent, 4.663 percent, and 5.058 percent, respectively, with auction yields settling above these secondary market benchmarks.

This came on the heels of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) latest 25-bp rate hike last week, which has raised expectations of further policy tightening should inflation remain above the two- to four-percent target range.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said yields edged higher after two straight weeks of declines following the BSP’s quarter-point hike and signals of additional tightening if inflation stays above the ceiling.

Ricafort added that the uptick in yields also tracked the peso’s weakness, with the currency hovering near ₱60.7 per United States (US) dollar, raising concerns over higher import costs and added inflationary pressure.

The BTr is ramping up its domestic fund-raising efforts for the second quarter of 2026, planning to borrow ₱364 billion via T-bills during the period, a 12.3-percent increase from the ₱324 billion targeted in the first quarter. T-bills will account for 46.4 percent of the ₱784-billion total domestic borrowing program for the quarter.

Meanwhile, the government has scaled back its long-term borrowing plans, with treasury bond (T-bond) offerings set at ₱420 billion, down 16 percent from the previous quarter’s ₱500 billion. The total domestic borrowing plan for the second quarter accounts for nearly 30 percent of the government’s ₱2.68-trillion annual financing requirement.