Budget Breather Muna: Gov’t Opens 2026 With P165.4-B Surplus
The national government started the year with a P165.4-billion budget surplus in January, a sharp jump from the P68.4-billion surplus recorded in the same month last year. Based on Bureau of the Treasury data, the better fiscal position came from slightly higher revenues and a much lower level of government spending.
Revenue collections in January reached P468.9 billion, up by a slim 0.36 percent from a year earlier. Taxes made up the biggest chunk of that amount, with the Bureau of Internal Revenue collecting P358.7 billion and the Bureau of Customs bringing in P80.9 billion.
On the spending side, government expenditures dropped 23.9 percent to P305.5 billion. The Treasury said part of the decline was tied to the rescheduling of transfers to local government units, while another factor was the base effect from earlier payables and frontloaded disbursements in the previous year.
The report also showed that interest payments climbed to P127.8 billion, reflecting fresh debt taken on to cover the earlier deficit and changes in coupon payment schedules after refinancing. Even with that increase, the government still posted a much bigger primary surplus of P293.2 billion once interest payments were excluded.
In simple terms, the January numbers gave the government a decent fiscal cushion to begin 2026, but the details still show pressure points underneath. Taxes improved only modestly, non-tax collections weakened, and debt servicing stayed expensive, so the strong start does not automatically mean relax na ang public finances for the rest of the year.
Source: The Manila Times — https://www.manilatimes.net/2026/03/21/business/top-business/govt-posts-p1654b-surplus/2304568
