Treasury raises PHP28.6B through oversubscribed T-bill auction

The Bureau of the Treasury raised PHP28.6 billion for the national government through a successful auction on Monday, higher than its initial target of P25 billion.

The auction fully awarded 91-, 182-, and 364-day Treasury bills, which were oversubscribed by nearly four times with total tenders reaching PHP98.259 billion, compared to PHP116.316 billion in the previous auction on June 2.

Average rates for the T-bills declined across all tenors: 5.451 percent for 91-day bills (down by 0.1 basis point), 5.524 percent for 182-day bills (down by 4.1 bps), and 5.656 percent for 364-day bills (down by 2.4 bps).

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.'s chief economist Michael Ricafort attributed the slight easing of Treasury bill yields to May's inflation rate hitting a new 5.5-year low of 1.3 percent, suggesting possible interest rate cuts by the Monetary Board in their next meeting on June 19.

Investors are anticipating further monetary policy adjustments, with strong demand for T-bills as they seek to lock in still-high yields before potential rate declines.

The government will offer PHP30 billion in reissued 10-year Treasury bonds on Tuesday and aims to raise PHP150 billion from the domestic market this month.