Business NEWS

Government debt continued to snowball in February, driven mainly by both domestic and offshore borrowings as well as foreign exchange fluctuations.

The Department of Finance (DOF) said the Philippines has secured about $800 million worth of financing from multilateral development banks (MDBS) in December to ensure the government has funds to procure coronavirus booster shots.

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Tuesday called on the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to boost its information campaign on the availability of soft loans and financial grant programs to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that were affected by Typhoon Odette.

The World Bank has approved a fresh $600 million loan that aims to support the Philippines’ economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

Debt payments by the Philippine government were nearing the P1 trillion mark in the first nine-months of the year due to higher interest and principal settlements.

Debt payments by the Philippine government declined significantly in August due to lower principal payments to domestic creditor, data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed.

The nation government’s debt stock advanced at a much slower pace in August as debt repayments to foreign creditors softened the increase in domestic borrowings, data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed.

Government loans from local and foreign banks increased by more than double in July this year.

Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Friday said the P57.3-billion worth of loans the government has successfully secured can already cover the P25-billioin budgetary requirement for the vaccination of minors.