Higher debt repayments outweighed fresh borrowings in the first four months of 2026, pulling down the national government’s (NG) debt stock to ₱18.47 trillion, even as a weaker peso increased the peso value of foreign-currency obligations.

According to the latest Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) data, the end-April level of the NG’s outstanding debt reflects a modest decrease from the end-March record level of ₱18.49 trillion.

“The decline in debt was primarily driven by the government’s repayment of domestic securities, which more than offset the impact of peso depreciation against the United States (US) dollar on foreign-currency-denominated obligations,” the BTr said in a June 2 statement.

Domestic debt, which now represents 67.2 percent of the country’s total obligations, fell to ₱12.41 trillion. This was down by around one percent from March’s ₱12.53 trillion.

This decline in domestic debt was mainly attributed to a net redemption of ₱121.6 billion for the month, as ₱404.9 billion in maturities offset ₱283.2 billion in new debt issuances as higher yields tempered borrowings amid the prolonged war in the Middle East and the resulting global energy crisis.

However, the continued depreciation of the peso tempered this decrease, adding ₱2.5 billion to the peso value of foreign-currency-denominated domestic securities.

External debt continued to swell, reaching ₱6.06 trillion at the end of April. This was up 1.7 percent from ₱5.95 trillion in the previous month.

This expansion was largely fueled by the weakening of the peso against the US dollar and third-currency movements, which increased the peso value of foreign-currency-denominated obligations by ₱101.7 billion.

During the period, the exchange rate moved from ₱60.678 per US dollar to ₱61.54:$1. These valuation impacts were only partially offset by net redemptions.

Government-guaranteed obligations also edged higher, reaching ₱383.2 billion as of end-April, a modest increase from ₱381.4 billion in the previous month. The BTr said this movement was influenced by the effect of peso depreciation and third-currency movements on external guarantees.

As the NG manages its debt portfolio, the focus remains on navigating the impact of volatile currency movements and domestic funding needs to maintain its fiscal position.

Based on the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing (BESF) document for fiscal year (FY) 2026, the NG’s total debt is expected to climb past ₱19 trillion this year. This would mark a 7.6-percent increase from ₱17.71 trillion in 2025.