91-day T-bills fetch lower yield

The Bureau of the Treasury on Monday raised P22 billion from short-dated treasury bills amid lower rates and robust demand.

The Treasury awarded P7 billion in the benchmark 91-day T-bill at an average rate of 1.019 percent, down from 1.024 percent last week.

National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon said the Treasury doubled the amount awarded for noncompetitive bids such that they exceeded the P5-billion offering for the three-month debt paper.

The Treasury also sold P5 billion in 182-day IOUs at 1.443 percent, down from 1.453 percent previously.

It fully awarded P10 billion in 364-day securities at an annual rate of 1.745 percent, the same as last week’s rate.

Across the three tenors, total bids amounted to P80.4 billion, making the auction four times oversubscribed the original P20-billion offering.

“Hefty liquidity prevails with magnetic appeal of short tenors,” De Leon said.

De Leon said the ongoing “premyo” bonds sale was “doing well,” although she did not say how much had been sold so far. —BEN O. DE VERA INQ