PH LEADING

PH to Lead Southeast Asia Growth

Due to the high spending and robust consumption in terms of economic growth, the Philippine economy will lead the Southeast Asia in economic growth in the next two years.

This year the gross domestic product (GDP) will likely grow 6.8 percent and in the year 2018 the GDP will grow to 6.9 percent, outpacing, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Philippines will grow faster than China, but will fall behind India, the region’s leader.

“In these economies, the near-term pickup in growth is underpinned to a significant extent by stronger domestic demand and, in the Philippines, by higher public spending in particular,” said the IMF.

Recently, President Duterte’s economic managers unveiled “Dutertenomics” which the current administration is planning on spending 8 trillion in infrastructure to grow the economy.

These plans include Mindanao’s first railway and a subway for Metro Manila, where the heavy traffic jams cause a daily economic loss of 2.4 billion, this is according to a Japanese study.

According to Economic Planning secretary Ernesto Pernia, the government was targeting growth of 6.5 to 7.5 percent this year and 7 to 8 percent next year.

He also added that one of the thrusts of the Philippine Development Plan is accelerating strategic infrastructure development. This is the bedrock of the Philippine Development Plan towards an economy that continues to grow and in an inclusive fashion.

Looking back in 2016 the economy grew 6.9 First quarter of the Gross Domestic Product Data will be released in May of 2017.

Related News

See all