Investors SNAP up P15B in T-bills as market expects pause in rate hikes

With the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) expected to pause from hiking interest rates when its policymaking Monetary Board meets on Thursday, investors flocked to Monday’s T-bills auction, allowing the Bureau of the Treasury to sell all P15 billion it offered.

The Treasury sold P4 billion of the benchmark 91-day IOUs at an average rate of 5.35 percent, down from 5.394 percent last week.

It also awarded P5 billion in 182-day debt paper at 6.344 percent, up from 6.305 percent previously.

The P6 billion in 364-day government securities fetched an annual rate of 6.585 percent, higher than the 6.507 percent a week ago.

A total of P23.5 billion were tendered by investors, making the auction 1.5 times oversubscribed.

“We see that rates have continued to narrow given the expectation that the BSP might take a pause,” National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon told reporters after the auction.

Most economists expect the Monetary Board to keep interest rates steady on Dec. 13 given easing inflation pressures.

Last week, the government reported that headline inflation eased to a four-month low of 6 percent in November as average consumer prices that month declined by 0.3 percent compared to levels last October.

The BSP has raised key rates by 175 basis points so far this year as the inflation rate hit over nine-year highs due to rising global oil prices as well as domestic food supply woes. —BEN O. DE VERA