NG pays P537 B for 2016 debt

The national government spent P536.66 billion for debt payments in 2016, up slightly 0.5 percent from P534.14 billion in 2015, data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed.

Of the amount, P304.45 billion was spent for interest payment alone, while the remaining P232.2 billion was paid to settle the government’s principal loans.

Interest payments during the period decreased 1.6 percent from a year ago.

Of the interest payments made in 2016, P205.43 billion went to domestic debt, while payments for foreign debt accounted for P99 billion.

The government allots a portion of its budget for debt payments to settle obligations on a monthly basis, depending on their maturity. Debt payments form part of the government’s expenditures.

According to the BTr, interest payments only accounted for 11 percent of total expenditures in 2016, as compared to the 13.9 percent share in 2015.

The BTr said this indicated a wider fiscal space for productive government spending.

The share of interest payments to total revenue de- creased to 13.9 percent from 14.7 percent in 2015, indicating improved capacity of the national government to service its debt, the BTr said.

The national government’s borrowings in 2016 increased by more than 40 percent to P453.14 billion from P317.63 billion in the previous year.

Data from the BTr showed the government borrowed

P95.64 billion from external sources, while P357.50 billion came from domestic lenders.

Program loans and project loans from international multilateral agencies accounted for P35.60 billion and P18.80 billion, respectively.

Domestic borrowings, meanwhile, comprise of fixed rate Treasury-bonds (P233.5 billion), retail treasury bonds (100 billion), and Treasury-bills (23.5 billion).