National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon
MANILA – The rates of the Treasury bills (T-bills) moved sideways on Monday as demand for the debt paper remained strong on the back of the central bank’s assurance of continued support for the pandemic-hit economy.
The average rate of the 91-day paper stood at 1.079 percent, the 182-day at 1.402 percent, and the 364-day at 1.604 percent.
These were at 1.078 percent, 1.405 percent, and 1.609 percent for the three-month, six-month, and one-year papers, respectively, during the auction last Sept. 6.
The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) offered all the tenors for PHP5 billion each and made full awards.
Tenders for the 91-day T-bill amounted to PHP17.645 while it reached PHP25.312 billion for the six-month paper and PHP20.316 billion for the one-year paper.
“Market (is) taking cue from (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) Gov(ernor) (Benjamin) Diokno statements on BSP support to NG (national government) towards accelerated and sustained recovery including this morning’s to extend direct advances,” National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon told journalists in a Viber message on Monday.
Aside from the monetary policy measures that the central bank has been implementing since last year, the BSP has extended funding support to the NG to help in the government’s pandemic-related programs.
The BSP has extended three provisional advances amounting to PHP540 billion each to the NG since last year, with the last one approved by the policy-making Monetary Board (MB) in July.
Diokno said MB’s latest approval was made after the NG had fully-paid the previous cash boost.
Under the Central Bank Act, the BSP is allowed to extend bridge financing to the NG, with the amount to be based on NG’s average revenues in the last three years.
The bridge financing is on top of the repurchase deal with the Bureau of the Treasury (BSP) for PHP300 billion worth of three-month securities, which may be extended for another three months. (PNA)
