Palace on record-high debt of P11 trillion: We are at mid-range

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque assured the public on Tuesday that the country's national outstanding debt of P11 trillion amid the COVID-19 pandemic is not a cause of concern.

Roque was referring to the Bureau of Treasury's announcement that the national government’s outstanding debt reached a new record-high of P11,071,130,000,000 as of end of May 2021.

The total debt stock slightly increased by P79.81 billion or 0.73% from its end of April level with the strong peso tempering further increases.

"'Yung ating naiulat na external debt ngayon ay nasa mid-range, kung ikukumpara natin sa mga ekonomiya na kasing-lakas natin gaya ng ekonomiya ng Latin America," Roque said.

(Our reported external debt is at mid-range if we compare it with economies at our level just like Latin America's countries.)

"Malaking tingnan iyan, but we are in the mid-range, at wala namang problema iyan pagdating sa ating kakayahan na magbayad," Roque added.

(It looks like a big amount, but we are in mid-range, and it is not a problem when it comes to our capacity to pay.)

The Treasury attributed the debt increase to “net availment of both local and external financing.”

The national government allocated a P72.5 billion budget for purchasing and logistical operations of inoculating COVID-19 vaccines.—AOL, GMA News