T-bills rates increases

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

The government fully awarded the P20-billion short-term debt securities during Monday’s sale of Treasury-bills (T-bills) amid higher interest rates.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) was able to borrow its target amount of P20 billion via T-bills as the total bids reached P43.815 , exceeding the original size of issuance by more than twice.

READ: T-bill rates surge ahead of inflation data release

Auction results showed the 91-day T-bill averaged at 5.698 percent., more expensive than the 5.686 percent in the previous auction. The yield for the 182-day debt paper rose by 5.968 percent from 5.959 percent. Likewise, the rate for the 364-day debt note went up by 6.073 percent from 6.050 percent last week.

“Yield were slightly higher as consistent signals on possible local policy rate cut of 25 basis points (bps) as early as August 2024 and possible 50 bps local rate cuts in 2024 led to some greater investor demand for longer-dated bonds and other fixed income securities to lock in still relatively higher interest rates rates,” Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Micahel Ricafort said in a message.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona said earlier that the Monetary Board may cut rates by 25 basis points (bps) as early as August and another 25 bps in the last quarter of the year even ahead of the Federal Reserve.

“I think they may cut sometime this year, and we may cut sometime this year. We just don’t know who will be first. So that’s up to the data.,” Remolona said in an economic briefing yesterday.

The Monetary Board has kept its key rate at a 17-year high of 6.5 percent.