T-bills upsized as investors position for rate cut

THE GOVERNMENT increased the volume of Treasury bills awarded on Monday despite softer demand, with mixed yields reflecting expectations of another rate cut by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) next month.

- By Aaron Michael C. Sy Reporter

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised P25 billion from the auction, above its P22-billion program. Total tenders reached P84.015 billion, more than four times the offer, though below P98.311 billion at the auction last week.

The Auction Committee fully awarded bids across all tenors as average yields landed below secondary market levels, the Treasury said.

The 91-day T-bill fetched an average rate of 4.842%, up 2.1 basis points (bps) from a week earlier, with the government accepting P7 billion as planned. Demand reached P26.19 billion, with accepted yields ranging from 4.825% to 4.854%.

The Treasury increased its award for the 182-day tenor to P10.5 billion from P7.5 billion after tenders hit P29.47 billion.

The BTr doubled its noncompetitive bucket for the tenor to P6 billion. The average rate declined by 1.1 bps to 4.97%, with accepted bids ranging from 4.923% to 5%.

For the 364-day T-bill, the BTr raised P7.5 billion as planned as demand reached P28.355 billion.