NG gross borrowings decline in October

THE NATIONAL Government's (NG) gross borrowings declined in October amid a drop in foreign debt, the Bureau of the Treasury said.

- - Aubrey Rose A. Inosante

Data from the Treasury showed that total gross borrowings fell by 32.07% to P87.81 billion in October from P129.26 billion in the same month a year ago.

Month on month, gross borrowings slid by 31.89% from P128.91 billion in September.

Domestic borrowings, which made up the bulk or 83.19% of the total borrowings, rose by 8.28% to P73.05 billion in October from P67.46 billion in the same month last year.

This was composed of P70 billion in fixed-rate Treasury bonds (T-bonds) and P3.05 billion in Treasury bills (T-bills). There were no fixed-rate Treasury notes and retail Treasury bonds for the month.

On the other hand, external borrowings slumped by 76.12% to P14.76 billion from P61.8 billion in the same month in 2024. This is comprised of project loans.

"(The lower gross borrowings) is consistent with the bigger budget surplus in October 2025 versus a year ago that fundamentally reduced the need for more NG borrowings," Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message over the weekend.