PH eyeing $1 billion ‘Samurai’ bond issue

TOKYO — Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III confirmed here Tuesday that the Philippines is planning to issue about $1 billion-worth of “Samurai” bonds this year following its two successful floats of dollar- and renminbi-denominated securities in the offshore markets in the first quarter of 2018.

Buoyed by the tight spreads of the Philippines’ earlier bond issuances this year, Dominguez said such developments “indicate confidence in the fiscal and debt management of the Duterte administration.”

In showcasing the Philippines’ vibrant economic prospects, Dominguez recalled that when the government issued $2 billion-worth of 10year dollar denominated bonds in January, its spread was 37.8 basis points (bps) over the US Treasuries, while its maiden “Panda” bond float of 1.46 billion renminbi in March had an even tighter spread of only 35 bps over the benchmark.

“This year, we are also planning to issue around one billion US dollars worth of ‘Samurai’ bonds,” Dominguez told Japanese businessmen during his opening remarks at the Philippine Economic Briefing (PEB) held at the Imperial Hotel here.

The finance chief gave no other details of the planned yen-denominated bond float in his speech, but he has said earlier that the government will proceed with it by September or October of 2018.

This year’s PEB, which showcases the Philippines’ economic resilience amid its goal of spurring infrastructure development to achieve inclusive growth, is the second held in this Japanese capital since last year. DOF