The debt, in its broadest measure, continued to decrease last January, according to the monthly information from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP).
The Finance and Public Debt Report for the first month of the year showed that the Historical Balance of the Public Sector Borrowing Requirements (SHRFSP), the debt in its broadest measure, showed a decrease of 1.8% in annual comparison.
The foregoing represented the largest drop in debt for a January since 2018, when the balance decreased by 5.9 percent. Meanwhile, it tied 11 months down in its annual comparison.
In the breakdown, it was observed that the fall was caused mainly by a decrease in the external balance, that is, that debt that is contracted abroad.
Said balance, which represents 28.7% of the total debt, decreased by 16.5% in January. Meanwhile, the internal debt presented an increase of 5.7 percent.
The decrease in the external balance, explained Héctor Villarreal, a professor at the Tec de Monterrey, was due to the fact that last year the government carried out a substitution of external debt for internal one, for which reason the foreign debt went from representing 33.7% of the SHRFSP in January 2022 at 28.7% this year.
Another factor that has also helped to reduce the debt has been the appreciation of the peso against the dollar, which occurred from November to part of February.
“In the first month of the year, fiscal balances were located at favorable levels with respect to what was programmed and what was observed in the same period of 2022, which contributes to keeping the debt controlled and public finances healthy,” highlighted the report of the dependence.
Deficit of 17,100 million pesos
The report from the Ministry of Finance also showed that, in the first month of the year, the budget deficit was 17.100 million pesos, which the agency considered favorable when compared to the deficit of 98.300 million pesos that were forecast for January. .
“The primary budget balance reached a surplus of 70.900 million pesos, different from the expected deficit of 7.800 million pesos,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Financial Requirements of the Public Sector were 15.900 million pesos.
