Farm output grows 1.80% in Q4 2018, misses full-year projection
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine agricultural output grew at a slower pace in the final three months of 2018 compared to the same period in 2017, putting the full-year tally below the government’s forecast, the country’s statistics agency said Wednesday.
Agriculture expanded 1.80 percent in the three months to December last year, lower than 2.26 percent growth chalked up in the comparable period in 2017 but was a reversal of the preceding quarter’s 0.83-percent contraction.
All four subsectors — crops, livestock, poultry and fisheries — contributed to the higher production from October to December last year, the Philippines Statistics Authority reported.
For the entire 2018, farm output increased by 0.56 percent, below the Department of Agriculture’s earlier projection of 2.5 percent for the year and lower than 4 percent growth posted in 2017.
Agriculture production has historically contributed about a tenth to gross domestic product and accounted for a fourth of employed persons.
Last month, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said his department has set a 3.5 percent target for production growth this year.
The Philippine Statistics Authority is scheduled to report fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 GDP data on January 24. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral with a report from The STAR/Louise Maureen Simeon
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