PHL sells P9B worth of bonds at auction

The Bureau of Treasury hesitated at first and shortly pondered only a partial award of P5.53 billion instead of the programmed sale of P9 billion during Tuesday’s bond auction, but investors offered rates as low as 4.610 percent from 4.674 percent that made officials reconsider its move.   "The rates were consistent with secondary market rates," National Treasurer Roberto Tan told reporters after the auction.   Treasury received total tenders of P15.44 billion.   The P9-billion, five-year bonds were the first tranche of P54 billion of long-term securities Treasury plans to bid out from April to June this year. The bureau also intends to auction off P52.5 billion worth of Treasury bills this quarter.   In the first quarter, the government borrowed P117 billion.   Economic managers expect the budget deficit for all of 2012 to rise to P280 billion from only P197.8 billion last year.   “The January to February fiscal deficit of the National Government was recorded at P 5.3 billion, lower than the deficit of P8.1 billion incurred during the same period last year,” the Department of Finance said.   According to Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad, the national government disbursed  P108.5 billion in February–an increase 6.9 percent compared to the spending a year earlier. —ELR/VS, GMA News