Central Bank of the Philippines reports external debt falls to USD 137.63 billion and debt-to-GDP ratio to 29.8% at end-2024

The Central Bank of the Philippines released updated external debt statistics showing total external debt at USD 137.63 billion as of end-December 2024, down USD 2.02 billion (1.4%) from end-September 2024. The external debt-to-GDP ratio fell to 29.8% from 30.6%, while gross international reserves stood at USD 106.26 billion and covered short-term debt by 3.81 times under the remaining-maturity concept; the debt service ratio rose to 11.5% from 10.3% a year earlier. The quarter-on-quarter decline was attributed to USD 1.29 billion in negative foreign-exchange revaluation of non-USD borrowings, residents’ net acquisition of Philippine debt securities from non-residents of USD 835.33 million, and net repayments of USD 133.51 million, partly offset by prior-period adjustments of USD 242.74 million. Year on year, the stock increased by USD 12.23 billion (9.8%), driven mainly by USD 9.61 billion in net availments (USD 5.59 billion public sector and USD 4.03 billion private sector) and non-residents’ net acquisition of Philippine debt securities of USD 3.37 billion. Medium- and long-term borrowings accounted for 79.7% (USD 109.72 billion) of the total under the remaining-maturity concept, with short-term debt at 20.3% (USD 27.91 billion); official sources represented 39.3% of outstanding debt and 74.0% was US dollar-denominated, with Japan, Singapore and the Netherlands the largest creditor countries.