Treasury bill rates up across the board

Treasury bills rates climbed across the board for the second straight week on Monday, with the benchmark 91-day returning above 1 percent alongside rising bond yields in emerging markets.

The Treasury sold all P20 billion in short-dated IOUs it offered despite the higher rates—the P5 billion in three-month bills fetched an average rate of 1.04 percent, up from 0.875 percent last week.

It also awarded P5 billion in 182-day debt paper at 1.226 percent, up from 1.067 percent previously.

The P10 billion in 364-day bills were sold at an annual rate of 1.68 percent, up from 1.527 percent.

National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon declined to comment on the rate pickup.

Monday’s auction was two times oversubscribed as tenders across the three tenors amounted to P41 billion.

In a Feb. 26 report, Capital Economics chief emerging markets economist William Jackson said “despite the rise in emerging markets’ bond yields over the past week, emerging markets’ financial conditions remain very loose.”

—Ben O. de Vera INQ

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