THE Philippine national government’s total outstanding debt hit P12.79 trillion as of the end of the first half of the year, data from the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) showed.

The debt stock climbed 2.4 percent in June due to the net issuances of domestic and external loans as well as currency adjustments, BTr said.

Out of the total debt, 31.5 percent was sourced externally while 68.5 percent were domestic borrowings, the agency said.

Domestic borrowings reached P8.77 trillion or 1.2 percent higher compared to May, while external debt rose to P4.02 trillion, up by 5.1 percent.

“The increment in external debt was attributed to the impact of local currency depreciation agains the USD amounting to P186.94 billion,” it said in a statement.

Net availment of external financing also offset the effect of the net depreciation against the US dollar on third-currency denominated obligations.

External debt rose by 7.3 percent compared to the end-December 2021 level, it added.

The Philippines has borrowed heavily in the last 2 years to fund its pandemic response measures.

In his first State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. said he wanyed to cut the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio to below 60 percent or the global standard, from 63.5 percent in March.