PH starts marketing dollar bond offering

THE Philippines has begun marketing a two-part dollar bond offering that will mark its first foray to the international debt market this year, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

The country is aiming to sell a 10-year bond and 25-year sustainability note at an initial price of 120 basis points above comparable US Treasuries and a yield of around 6.1 percent, respectively.

The Bureau of the Treasury has yet to confirm the offering but S&P Global Ratings has assigned it a “BBB+” in line with the country’s investment -grade rating.

“They rank equally with the sovereign’s other unsecured and unsubordinated debt obligations,” it added.

Finance Secretary Ralph Recto earlier told Bloomberg that the government was looking to prioritize dollar-denominated bonds as it sought to borrow “something like $3.5 billion this year…”

“There will be [offerings denominated in] euros I suppose, but mostly dollar,” he added.

Recto confirmed ongoing discussions with eight banks to assist with the planned foreign bond issuance.

He reiterated that the government’s policy remained that of limiting foreign borrowings to reduce exposure to currency risks.

The government is aiming to maintain an 80:20 borrowing mix this year, favoring domestic over foreign sources, with gross borrowings projected to reach P2.55 trillion.