T-bill yields climb after 7-week slide

MANILA, Philippines – Yields on short-dated local government debt rose for the first time after seven straight weeks of decline, as investors exercised caution ahead of the February inflation data and the unfolding US-Israel conflict with Iran that may disrupt global markets.

Auction results on Monday showed that the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised P27 billion via Treasury bills (T-bills) as planned, with total tenders reaching P76.55 billion.

This marked a change from recent weeks since the start of January, when the BTr consistently raised more than planned, typically around P37.8 billion.

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The rise in rates, according to Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., was still a “healthy upward correction.”

“The Treasury bill average auction yields mostly corrected slightly higher ahead of the latest local inflation data on March 5, which could be higher than the  2% in January 2026,” Ricafort said in his commentary.

The recent US–Israel military strikes on Iran, followed by Iranian retaliation around the Gulf, have fueled sharp increases in global crude oil prices and made fuel price relief even more elusive, as markets fear disruptions to energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz—a vital passage that carries about 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas.

On yields, the 91-day T-bill fetched an average rate of 4.311 percent, more expensive than the 4.240 percent from last week. 

The average rate for the 182-day debt paper stood at 4.417 percent, also higher than the 4.357 percent before.

Local creditors sought an average rate of 4.564 percent for the 364-day T-bill, up from the 4.501 percent previously.