The national government’s total debt payments in the first five months of the year jumped 97.92 percent as amortization significantly rose from the previous year’s level, data released by the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.
According to the latest cash operations report, the national government’s debt payments in January to May stood at P819.53 billion, much higher than the P414.07 billion recorded during the same period a year ago.
Amortization rose by 204.72 percent, to P589.95 billion from the P193.61 billion paid out in January to May 2022.
Meanwhile, interest payments as of May totaled to P229.57 billion, which increased 4.13 percent from the P220.46 billion paid out as of the same period the previous year.
In May alone, debt payments amounted to P49.05 billion, recording a 14.62 percent decline from the P57.44 billion paid out in the same period in 2022.
Amortization amounted to P7.7 billion which dropped 67.38 percent from the P23.62 billion recorded a year ago.
Interest payments on the other hand totaled to P41.34 billion, 22.21 percent up from the May 2022 level of P33.83 billion.
The BTr earlier reported that the national government’s gross borrowings in January to May rose 35.92 percent as both foreign and domestic financing registered double digit increases.
Gross borrowings in the first five months of the year jumped to P1.26 trillion from the P924.43 billion recorded a year ago.
Gross domestic borrowings for the period accounted for the bigger chunk amounting to P912.58 billion, up 41.53 percent from the year ago level of P644.82 billion.
Meanwhile, gross external borrowings for the period went up by 22.98 percent to P343.87 billion from P279.61 billion a year ago.