Manila: The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) successfully raised PHP30.8 billion through its recent auction of Treasury bills (T-bills), surpassing the initial offer of PHP22 billion. The auction witnessed significant interest, being 5.4 times oversubscribed with total bids reaching PHP118.9 billion. This prompted the Auction Committee to increase the accepted non-competitive bids for the 91-day and 182-day securities to PHP5.6 billion and PHP6.4 billion, respectively, for the 364-day security.

According to Philippines News Agency, the total tenders for the 91-day T-bills amounted to PHP35.38 billion. The Auction Committee accepted PHP9.8 billion, which exceeded the initial offer of PHP7 billion. The yield for these securities was set at 5.118 percent.

The auction also saw the BTr raising PHP9.8 billion from total tenders of PHP31.5 billion for the 182-day T-bills, again higher than the PHP7 billion initial offer. The yield for this duration settled at 5.496 percent.

For the 364-day T-bills, total tenders reached PHP52.06 billion, with the BTr accepting PHP11.2 billion. The average yield for this category settled at 5.697 percent.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation's chief economist, Michael Ricafort, noted that the latest Treasury bill average auction yields corrected slightly lower for the third consecutive week. This correction followed the reiteration of dovish signals from BSP Governor Remolona, hinting at a possible 0.25 basis points local policy rate cut as early as the next BSP rate-setting meeting on April 10, 2025.

Last week, the average auction yields for the 91-, 182-, and 364-day T-bills were 5.178 percent, 5.548 percent, and 5.773 percent, respectively. Ricafort also highlighted the unusually high demand for the 364-day Treasury bill, with PHP52.06 billion in total demand, PHP11.2 billion of which was fully awarded. Investors may have anticipated possible local policy rate cuts in the coming months, opting to lock in yields before they decrease further.