MANILA - The country's debt stock as of end-June was 6.2% higher than what was recorded as of the same period last year due mainly on increased government borrowings to cover the swelling budget deficit.

According to National Treasurer Roberto Tan, the Philippines' outstanding debt amounted to P4.227 trillion as of the first half of the year, P263.6 billion more than the P3.963 trillion as of the same period in 2008.

At the present level, each of the 92.2 million Filipinos owes P45,845.

Tan said 56% of the total national debt came from domestic creditors while 44% was sourced from foreign ones.

He said overseas borrowings went up by double-digit as the government floated more foreign currency-denominated bonds and availed of more official development assistance loans from multilateral lenders. He added that foreign borrowings also bloated because of the continued depreciation of the peso against the US dollar.

The country's foreign debts jumped 11.5% to P1.851 trillion as of end-June from P1.66 trillion as of the same month last year.

Of the amount, P1.058 trillion was raised from the issuance of securities overseas while P792.2 billion was incurred through loans from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, among others.

Domestic debt, on the other hand, rose 3.2% to P2.376 trillion as of end-June this year from P2.303 trillion as of the same month last year because of the issuance of more treasury bills and bonds.

For the whole of 2009, the Finance Department estimates the country's debt stock to total P4.489 trillion or 57.6% of gross domestic product, up 6.3% from P4.221 trillion or 56.3% of GDP last year.

The Philippines relies heavily on borrowings to cover its budget deficit, which is projected to hit a record P250 billion or 3.2% of GDP this year.

Amid dwindling government revenue collections and accelerated spending, the deficit widened to P188 billion in the first 7 months, 462% higher than the P33.4 billion in the same period last year.