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Philippine economy grows by 11.8 pct in Q2, ends recession

The Philippine economy accelerated in the second quarter of 2021, growing by 11.8 percent compared with the 17-percent contraction in the same period last year, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Tuesday.

PSA head Dennis Mapa said that the gross domestic product's growth rate is the highest since the fourth quarter of 1988.

"The main contributors to the April to June growth, with their corresponding increase, were manufacturing, 22.3 percent; construction, 25.7 percent," Mapa said in an online briefing.

The data showed that all sectors expanded except agriculture on the production side, which slightly contracted by 0.1 percent because of the decline in pork production. Meanwhile, the industry sector grew by 20.8 percent and services by 9.6 percent.

On the expenditure side, total investment grew by 75.5 percent, driven by the near doubling of private investments growth at 94.9 percent.

"Our policy to allow both public and private construction even during the enhanced community quarantine period in March and April 2021 shows that we can revive the economy while addressing the COVID-19 infections," Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said in the same briefing.

With improving consumer confidence, Chua said household spending growth also turned positive at 7.2 percent as millions regained their jobs and income sources in the first half of this year.

Moreover, Chua said that foreign trade substantially recovered, with imports and exports growing at 37.8 percent and 27 percent, respectively. "This strong rebound reflects increased domestic demand and the recovery of our trading partners," he added.

"In summary, almost all sectors bounced back despite the imposition of the strictest lockdown in April and May this year," Chua said. "This is a clear indication that managing risks stands a far better chance of improving both economic and health outcomes."

The Philippines has been in varying lockdown levels since the government imposed a lockdown in mid-March last year, causing many businesses to close down temporarily.

Due to the pandemic, the Philippine economy shrank by 9.5 percent in 2020, the lowest rate since 1946. The economy grew by 6.1 percent in 2019.

Unlike last year's hard lockdown, the government allowed this year most industries and services to continue to operate. Public transportation is also allowed to enable workers to report to work.

The Southeast Asian country has reported a total of 1,667,714 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Monday, including 29,128 deaths.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has decided to place Metro Manila and nearby provinces for the third time under two-week hard lockdown beginning Aug. 6 due to the spread of the highly infectious Delta variant. 

Source:Xinhua  Editor:shijinyu

(Source_title:Philippine economy grows by 11.8 pct in Q2, ends recession)

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