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(KPL/Xinhua) The Philippines' debt increased to 16.63 trillion pesos (roughly 290.3 billion U.S. dollars) as of February 2025, 1.96 percent higher than the debt incurred in January, the Philippines' Bureau of Treasury said on Tuesday.
(KPL/Xinhua) The Philippines' debt increased to 16.63 trillion pesos (roughly 290.3 billion U.S. dollars) as of February 2025, 1.96 percent higher than the debt incurred in January, the Philippines' Bureau of Treasury said on Tuesday.
"The rise was primarily driven by the net issuance of new domestic and external debt to support more public programs and projects," the bureau said.
Nevertheless, the bureau added that the increase was partially offset by the strengthening of the peso against the U.S. dollar, which appreciated from 58.375 pesos at the end of January to 57.990 pesos at the end of February, helping manage foreign debt obligations.
The bureau said domestic debt accounted for 67.5 percent of the total debt stock, while the remaining 32.5 percent comprised external obligations.
The bureau said the country's external debt stood at 5.41 trillion pesos in February, 3.44 percent higher than in January.
The bureau attributed the rise in external debt to the net availment of foreign borrowing amounting to 193.71 billion pesos and the 20.41 billion pesos net appreciation effect on third-currency-denominated debt.
However, these factors were partially offset by a 34.48 billion pesos reduction due to peso appreciation against the U.S. dollar. (1 peso equals 0.017 U.S. dollars)
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