BSP fully awards debt at auction

Jenina P. Ibañez


,




Senior Reporter

The Philippine central bank fully awarded short-term securities at an auction on Friday, as the average rate declined amid easing global oil prices.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) raised P100 billion as planned from its offer of 28-day bills that attracted P130.51 billion in tenders. Demand was higher than P110.25 billion last week.

Accepted rates for the one-month debt ranged from 1.76% to 1.805%, narrower than 1.7475% to 2% last week. The average rate of the one-month securities was 1.7798 %, lower than 1.7934% last week.

The central bank uses short-term securities and its term deposit facility to mop up excess liquidity in the financial system and guide market rates.

The auction yield slipped after global oil prices fell as the United States and other countries consider releasing their petroleum reserves, Michael L. Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said in a Viber message.

Yields fell after the BSP kept policy rates and cut its inflation forecast for the year, he said. “The BSP 28-day securities auction yield also slightly eased due to higher total bids.”

The Unites States has asked China, India, and Japan to release oil reserves in a coordinated move to lower global energy prices, Reuters reported. Oil prices went up slightly on Thursday after falling to six-week lows.

The central bank on Thursday kept the key rate steady at 2%, as expected by all 20 economists in a



BusinessWorld



poll last week.

BSP lowered its average inflation forecast for 2021 to 4.3% from 4.4%. Inflation in the first 10 months of the year was 4.5%.