MANILA, Sep 3(ABC): The Philippines’ debt reached 12.89 trillion pesos (about 226.97 billion U.S. dollars) at the end of July, 0.8 percent higher than the debt incurred in June, the Philippine Bureau of Treasury said on Saturday. The bureau attributed the increase in debt portfolio in July to the net issuances of domestic and external loans and currency adjustments.
“The national government debt has increased by 9.9 percent since end-December 2021, but the debt-to-GDP ratio has improved to 62.1 percent as of the end of the second quarter of 2022 from the 63.5 percent recorded in the previous quarter as the economy continues to recover from the health crisis,” the bureau said. Of the total debt stock, the bureau said 31.5 percent was sourced externally, while 68.5 percent was domestic borrowings.
The bureau added the country’s external debt increased by 14 percent in July from the end-December 2021 level due to the impact of the local currency depreciation against the U.S. dollar and external financing.
