PH economy expands 6.3% in Q2

Metro Manila, Philippines – The Philippine economy expanded by 6.3 percent in the second quarter, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Thursday, Aug. 8, with first half data on track to reach the government’s full-year target.

Economic growth, as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP) or the sum of goods and services produced by the country in a year, quickened from 5.8 percent in the first quarter. It was the fastest expansion since the first quarter of 2023.

In a press briefing, PSA Undersecretary and National Statistician Dennis Mapa said the growth drivers were construction at 16 percent, transportation and storage 14.8 percent, other services 10 percent, and accommodation and food service activities 10.4 percent.

In terms of major economic sectors, industry and services posted year-on-year growth of 7.7 percent and 6.8 percent respectively, while agriculture, forestry, and fishing contracted by 2.3 percent.

Meanwhile, the following contributed to the quarter-on-quarter growth of half a percent: construction; information and communication; wholesale and retail trade; and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles.

On the demand side, National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the contributor to growth was the significant increase in total investments with 11.5 percent, fueled by “robust construction activities” with 20.8 percent.

He attributed this to the fast rollout of construction and rehabilitation projects, complemented by an equal pace of private construction activities.

According to the PSA, household final consumption expenditure was the top driver in the demand side, which grew year-on-year by 4.6 percent.

“This significant development brings our real GDP growth to 6.0 percent for the first half of the year, keeping us on track to achieve our target growth rate of 6-7 percent for 2024,” Balisacan said.