MULTILATERAL lender World Bank is expecting the Philippine economy to grow at an average of 6% over the period 2024 to 2026.
In its Philippines Economic Update (PEU) released Tuesday, the World Bank said its outlook for the economy “hinges on the country’s ability to rein in inflation, implement a more supportive monetary policy to foster business growth, and sustain government spending on infrastructure to stimulate economic activity, while safeguarding against the increased global policy uncertainty.”
“Strong growth puts the country on a firmer footing to maintain gains in poverty reduction,” said Zafer Mustafaoglu, World Bank country director for the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei Darussalam.
“The (Philippines) remains vulnerable to extreme weather events such as typhoons and heavy monsoon rains. Therefore, it is important to sustain proactive measures to protect poor and vulnerable households,” said Mustafaoglu.
For 2024 alone, the lender is expecting the economy to grow by 5.9%, down from its earlier assumption of 6% in October, taking into consideration the slower growth seen in the third quarter of the year.
In the third quarter, the economy as measured by gross domestic product (GDP) — the total value of goods and services produced in a given period — grew by 5.2%, slower than the 6.4% growth seen in the second quarter.
The World Bank noted that “several typhoons have affected millions of people, destroyed crops and property, damaged infrastructure, and disrupted economic activity, particularly in tourism and construction.”
The lender added that the Philippine economy is expected to gain momentum in 2025 at a rate of 6.1% and 6% in 2026.
The World Bank said robust growth is expected to boost poverty reduction due to improvements in household incomes, strong job creation, and continuing economic recovery.
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said that the country has a “good chance” of attaining upper middle-income country status in 2025 as well as hit the goal of reducing poverty incidence to a single-digit come 2028. (GMA Integrated News)
