Metro Manila, Philippines – The government said achieving upper-middle-income status and reducing poverty remains within reach, even as global institutions downgrade the country’s growth outlook.
At a Palace briefing, press officer Claire Castro said the government remains confident of meeting economic targets within the president’s term.
Citing a statement from Socioplanning Economic Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Castro said the country is still on track despite global uncertainties.
“Formal classification may require additional years of sustained results. We remain confident this will be achieved within the term of the Marcos administration,” Balisacan said.
“Despite geopolitical tensions and heightened uncertainty, we will stay the course in stabilizing the economy and strengthening social protection to sustain poverty reduction,” he added.
Castro said the government continues to push measures to ease the impact of rising fuel prices linked to tensions in the Middle East.
“So sa ngayon, kahit ano ang naranasan natin dulot ng gulo dito sa Middle East, pinagsusumikapan ng gobyerno na maibsan or maiwasan, mabawasan ang naranasan natin na hirap dulot ng krisis sa Middle East,” she said.
[Translation: Despite the effects of the Middle East conflict, the government is working to ease and reduce the hardship experienced by Filipinos.]
She added that efforts to sustain economic growth remain ongoing, supported by fuel subsidies, tax relief on liquefied petroleum gas and kerosene, transport assistance, and food security programs.
The government has also implemented a ₱10 per liter diesel discount for public utility vehicles, expanded service contracting, and rolled out cash aid and toll discounts for transport workers, alongside the expansion of the ₱20 rice program.
The country is under a state of national energy emergency to coordinate the government’s response to the global oil shock.
The International Monetary Fund has downgraded the economic outlook for the country, which cut its 2026 growth forecast for the Philippines by one and a half percentage points to 4.1 percent from 5.6 percent in its latest World Economic Outlook.
If realized, the growth rate would fall below the government’s 5 percent to 6 percent target and mark one of the weakest expansions in recent years outside the pandemic period.
The IMF also warned that the Philippines is more exposed to the oil crisis than its regional peers, with growth expected to lag behind the 4.9 percent average for emerging and developing Asia.
