MANILA, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine government is seeking congressional approval of a 7.2 trillion-peso (about 117.8 billion U.S. dollars) budget for 2027, according to local media reports on Tuesday.

A general view of cranes atop buildings under construction with skyline of the Makati Central Business District (CBD), suburban Manila on January 29, 2026. (File photo: AFP)

According to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the proposed budget is 6 percent higher than 2026 and equivalent to 21.7 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

The DBM said 316 billion pesos, or nearly four-fifths of the increase in next year's budget, would be used to cover mandatory obligations, such as salary adjustments for military and uniformed personnel.

Defense spending is proposed to rise to 328.8 billion pesos from 305.5 billion pesos in the current budget, an increase of 7.6 percent.