The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) fully awarded bids for the treasury bills auctioned on Monday amid robust demand for the short-term IOUs.
The auction was three times oversubscribed, attracting P74.5 billion in total tenders.
The BTr raised the full program of P25 billion.
The 91-, 182- and 364-day securities fetched average rates of 5.422 percent, 5.657 percent, and 5.722 percent, respectively.
The first two tenors had rates higher than the previous rates and the Bloomberg Valuation Service (BVAL) rates.
The previous rates were 5.393 percent, 5.645 percent, and 5.726 percent, while the BVAL rates were 5.37 percent, 5.618 percent, and 5.78 percent for the three-month, six-month, and one-year IOUs, respectively.
John Paolo Rivera, a senior research fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said the increase in yields for the 91-day and 182-day securities reflects market expectations of near-term risks such as global uncertainties tied to US reciprocal tariffs, a possibly slower BSP rate cut cycle, and persistent inflationary concerns.
“Investors may be demanding a premium to hold shorter-term securities amid this environment,” Rivera said.
“As for the relatively weaker demand for the shorter tenors, some investors could be looking to lock in yields for longer ones amid signs that rates might trend lower later this year,” he added.
Rivera said that makes the 364-day securities more attractive from a yield-capture standpoint, especially if the market anticipates further easing in the second half of 2025.
Meanwhile, Michael Ricafort, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist, said the latest Treasury bill average auction yields were mostly slightly higher for the third week, partly due to some funding preparations related to tax payments/filings a day before the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s April 15 deadline.
He said preparations for the upcoming 10-year Treasury bond offering, which could siphon off some excess peso liquidity from the financial system, could also have been priced in.
Ricafort also cited other factors, such as Holy Week holiday-related spending preparations and a possible increase in the US inflation rate due to Trump’s higher US import tariffs.
