MANILA, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' outstanding external debt, or borrowings owed by residents to non-residents, increased by 1.5 percent to 148.87 billion U.S. dollars in the second quarter of 2025 from the previous quarter, the Philippine central bank said.
"The increase in external debt for the second quarter of 2025 was primarily due to valuation effects from the depreciation of the U.S. dollar," the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said in a statement released on Friday, adding that this increased the U.S. dollar-equivalent of borrowings denominated in other currencies by 1.49 billion dollars.
The BSP said that the net acquisition of Philippine debt securities, amounting to 660.96 million dollars, also contributed to the increase, while net repayments, amounting to 315.67 million dollars, partially tempered the increase in the country's external debt.
The BSP said the external debt stock was equivalent to 31.2 percent of the country's gross domestic product, slightly better than the 31.5 percent recorded in the previous quarter. ■
