Treasury rejects all bids for 10-year bonds

The Bureau of the Treasury on Tuesday rejected all bids for the reissued 10-year bonds as buyers sought higher rates and the market preferred shorter debt tenors.

Investors tendered P44.51 billion for the P30-billion offering, making the auction more than 1.4 times oversubscribed.

However, rates hit a high of 3.424 percent and a low of 3.05 percent, or an average of 3.329 percent had the IOUs maturing in nine years and nine months’ time been fully awarded.

The previous rate was 2.724 percent when these securities were also reissued in August after the maiden offering in July fetched a coupon of 2.875 percent.

In a statement, the Treasury said the average rate was also higher than the secondary market benchmark as well as the trading rate.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon said rates had been rising as the market expected the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to keep the policy rate—at a record-low of 2.25 percent—unchanged until year’s end.

De Leon added that the appetite among investors remained on the immediate part of the curve.

The Treasury sold all P30 billion of the new three-year bonds it offered two weeks ago at a coupon of 2.375 percent as oversubscription hit almost three times due to market preference for the tenor. —Ben O. de Vera INQ