The Aquino government is eyeing a net borrowing plan of P307 billion next year, mostly from the local market.

Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) head Ricky Carandang said President Benigno S. Aquino III approved the government’s borrowing plan in favor of domestic borrowing during a meeting with his economic managers last Monday.

Carandang said the borrowing mix for next year is 70 percent from domestic sources while the remaining 30 percent would come from foreign lenders.

“The net borrowing expected for next year is P307.8 billion – P45.1 billion will be external or foreign and P262.7 billion will be domestic,” Carandang said in a news conference in the Palace.

The government borrows heavily to pay off maturing foreign and domestic obligations as well as finance a record budget deficit.

Carandang said the government also plans to sell peso-denominated bonds to global investors this year although details are still being ironed out.

He said this will be the first securities float of a peso instrument in the global market.

Present in the meeting with the President in Malacañang last Monday were Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima and Budget Secretary Florencio Abad.

Based on the past administration’s borrowing program, they intended to borrow P764.54 billion from local and foreign lenders next year, or P56 billion higher than this year’s P708.5 billion.

President Aquino has already approved a proposed national budget of P1.645 trillion in 2011 to finance better social services and attain faster growth. The budget deficit ceiling was revised upwards to P325 billion this year.