The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) secured P30.8 billion from its Treasury bill (T-bill) auction on Monday, surpassing its P22 billion target.
The auction drew strong demand, with bids totaling P90.6 billion, 4.1 times the amount on offer. As a result, the Auction Committee increased the non-competitive bid acceptance for the 91- and 182-day securities to P5.6 billion and P6.4 billion, respectively, while the 364-day T-bill allocation was raised to P11.2 billion.
For the 91-day T-bills, total bids amounted to P35.62 billion, and P9.8 billion was awarded at a yield of 5.178%, down from 5.283% in the previous week.
The BTr also raised P9.8 billion from the 182-day T-bills, which attracted P30.05 billion in tenders. The yield for this tenor settled at 5.548%, a slight decrease from 5.61% last week.
On the 364-day T-bills, the BTr accepted P11.2 billion out of P24.92 billion in bids, surpassing the initial P8 billion offer. The yield for these securities remained unchanged at 5.773%.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation chief economist Michael Ricafort noted that the slight drop in T-bill yields for the second consecutive week follows the easing of inflation to 2.1%, which is near the lower end of the central bank’s 2% to 4% target range.
He added that market sentiment has been bolstered by the central bank’s recent decision to cut banks’ reserve requirements, which is expected to inject P330 billion into the banking system by March 28 this year, alongside the Philippines’ exit from the FATF gray list, which could further improve sentiment toward the economy and financial markets.