Public debt accounted for 91.60% of total outstanding debt in the December quarter, compared to 91.15% at the end of September
Public debt accounted for 91.60% of total outstanding debt in the December quarter, compared to 91.15% at the end of September
The government’s total debt increased to ₹128.41 lakhcrore in the December quarter from ₹125.71 lakhcrore in the three months ended September 2021, according to the latest Public Debt Management Report.
The increase reflects a 2.15% increase on the previous quarter in the October-December 2021-22 period.
In absolute terms, total liabilities, including liabilities under the government’s “public account”, increased to ₹1.28.41.996 billion at the end of December 2021. Total liabilities as of September 30 were ₹1.25.71,747 crore.
The report released by the Treasury Department on Monday said that the national debt accounted for 91.60% of the total outstanding debt in the December quarter, compared to 91.15% at the end of September.
Almost 25% of the outstanding time-limited securities had a remaining term of less than 5 years.
The ownership pattern of central government securities shows that commercial banks accounted for 35.40% at the end of December 2021, down from 37.82% at the end of September 2021.
“The share of insurance companies and severance funds was 25.74% and 4.33%, respectively, at the end of December 2021. The share of mutual funds was 3.08% at the end of the December 2021 quarter compared to 2.91% at the end of the September 2021 quarter. RBI’s share fell from 16.98% at the end of September 2021 to 16.92% at the end of December 2021,” it said it.
The central government issued ₹2,88,000 crore of obsolete securities against ₹2,83,975 crore in the third quarter of FY21, while repayments stood at ₹75,300 crore, it said.
During the quarter, Treasury yields firmed across the curve.
On the domestic front, the market was largely let down by RBI’s cancellation of its plan to purchase government securities in the third quarter. The spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus across most of the country raised fears of additional borrowing, and higher retail inflation also weighed on sentiment.
Yields on the 10-year benchmark rose to 6.45% at the end of the third quarter from 6.22% at the end of September, hardening 23 basis points from October to December, it said.
However, returns were supported by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decision to leave the policy repo rate unchanged at 4% to continue the accommodative stance in Q3 FY22.
