Q3 GDP growth kept at 5.2% – PSA

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) kept the country’s economic growth rate in the third quarter at 5.2 percent, but said there were revisions in some sectors.

In a statement, the PSA said while the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for the third quarter was maintained at 5.2 percent, there were changes in education, manufacturing and financial and insurance activities.

In particular, the growth rate for education was raised to 4.1 percent from 2.6 percent.

For manufacturing, the growth rate was changed to three percent from 2.8 percent.

Growth in financial and insurance activities was also raised to 9.1 percent from 8.8 percent.

The PSA said gross national income in the third quarter was maintained at 6.8 percent.

Net primary income from the rest of the world, meanwhile, was revised downward to 19.2 percent from 19.3 percent.

The PSA said it “revises GDP estimates based on an approved revision policy (PSA Board Resolution No. 1, Series of 2017-053), which is consistent with international standard practices on national accounts revisions.”

Data on the country’s fourth quarter and full-year 2024 economic performance will be released this Jan. 30.

Earlier, National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the Philippines likely missed its 2024 growth target of six to 6.5 percent, citing typhoons in October and November.

The Philippines posted average growth of 5.8 percent from January to September last year.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the economy grew by 5.9 percent last year, noting that the series of typhoons that hit the country “could have weighed again on agricultural production or output.”