Philippines' unemployment rate drops to 3.5 pct in February

The unemployment rate in the Philippines decreased to 3.5 percent in February from 4.5 percent in January, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Thursday.

PSA head Dennis Mapa said at a press conference that there were 1.8 million jobless Filipinos in February, lower than 2.15 million unemployed individuals in January.

National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government remains committed to creating "an enabling policy and regulatory environment to attract employment-generating investments."

"We will also continue to implement measures to address bottlenecks and expedite processes to realize investment pledges, particularly in priority sectors holding much promise, such as renewable energy and critical minerals," Balisacan said.