Phl to benefit from improving global economy

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines needs to maximize the benefits from the improving global economy in a bid to support economic growth in the next quarters, according to the country’s chief economic planner.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said that despite the first-quarter slowdown, the Philippine external market is a bright spot in the growth of the economy during the period.

“The country is now benefiting from the sustained growth in the global manufacturing industry,” he said.

Balisacan said exports of goods and services expanded by 12.6 percent in January to March, a rebound from the 10.6 percent contraction in the same period in 2013.

Imports, notably of raw materials and intermediate goods, also improved to 8 percent from a 2.8 percent growth last year.

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP), a measure of economic growth, expanded at a slower rate of 5.7 percent in the first quarter from 6.3 percent the previous quarter due to the lingering impact of natural disasters, notably Super Typhoon”Yolanda.”

On the supply side, the services sector mainly propelled the economy during the period with a growth of 6.8 percent, followed by the industry sector with 5.5 percent.

The agriculture sector only shared 0.1 percentage points to the overall growth, as the sector is yet to recover from the devastating effects of last year’s typhoons.

Balisacan, also the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Director General, believed that the economy would continue to grow at an increasing pace in the succeeding three quarters despite the slowdown.

“Given recent performance, it is clear that the country needs to diversify the economy, develop resiliency, and maximize benefits from the improving global economy,” he said.

Balisacan said the implementation of important reforms and strategies in the Updated Philippine Development Plan would definitely provide a boost to growth prospects.

He said speeding up the reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in the disaster-stricken areas is crucial, noting that “reconstruction efforts will rebuild assets and restore supply chains.”

“We remain confident that we will meet the growth target of 6.5 to 7.5 percent for the full year of 2014,” he added.