The Philippine economy grew 5.9 percent in the third quarter of 2023, faster than 4.3 percent in the second quarter, driven by strong performances of the services, industry and agriculture sectors, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Thursday.
The July-to-September performance nearly hit the low end of the 2023 gross domestic product (GDP) growth target range of 6 percent to 7 percent but was slower than 7.7 percent registered in the same period last year.
National statistician and civil registrar general Dennis Mapa said in an online briefing that agriculture, forestry and fishing; industry; and services all posted positive growths in the third quarter, with 0.9 percent, 5.5 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively.
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the third-quarter GDP made the Philippines the fastest economy in the region, surpassing that of Vietnam’s 5.3 percent, Indonesia’s 4.9 percent and Malaysia’s 3.3 percent.
“This brings the average in the first three quarters to 5.5 percent. The economy needs to grow by 7.2 percent in the fourth quarter to attain the low end of the target range,” Balisacan said.
Moody’s Analytics, a unit of Moody’s Corp., earlier said that elevated inflation and higher interest rates would continue to affect consumer spending in the coming months.
Latest data showed that inflation in October settled at a three-month low of 4.9 percent, down from 6.1 percent in September, pulled down by slower increases in the prices of food and nonalcoholic beverages.
BSP Governor Eli Remolona said inflation and the third-quarter GDP data are two of economic indicators they would consider if there would be any changes in the current monetary policy settings this month.