The Philippines' outstanding debt has reached a new record high, breaching PHP 15.18 trillion as of the end of February this year.
In data released by the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) on Wednesday, the latest figure showed a 2.63 percent increase from the PHP 14.8 trillion recorded as of the end of January.
The Treasury attributed the increase in the country's debt to the growth in domestic borrowings, which accounted for 69.68 percent of the total stock while 30.32 percent is foreign debt.
Domestic debt amounted to P10.58 trillion, up 4.08 percent month-on-month "due to the net issuance of government securities."
Since the beginning of the year, the debts have piled up by PHP 562.43 billion.
BTr noted that principal payments amounted to PHP 293.57 billion during the month, resulting in a net issuance of PHP 415.17 billion.
Meanwhile, the country's external debt stood at P4.6 trillion, down 0.56% month-on-month.
"The decrease was attributed to favorable foreign exchange movements by both local- and third-currencies against the US dollar amounting to P18.79 billion and P9.96 billion, respectively," the BTr said.
"These more than offset the P2.75 billion net availment of foreign loans," it added.
The Marcos administration plans to borrow a total of PHP 2.46 trillion from creditors at home and abroad in 2024 to help bridge its budget deficit, which is projected to hit PHP 1.4 trillion this year.
Finance Secretary Ralph Recto vowed that the government would remain “prudent” in its debt management by continuing to adopt a 75:25 borrowing mix in favor of domestic sources.
