Economic Performance of

the Philippines
from past to present
What is up with the Economic Performance
of the Philippines?
Is the Philippine economy emerging?

Or is it getting worse?
The Philippine Economic Situation

Philippine population keeps on

growing year-by-year, making it an
estimated 104 Million in December
2016. Philippine Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) in 2016 was 292.45
billion US dollars (0.47% value in the
world economy). The Philippines’
economy grew an annual 6.8% for the
full year of 2016, better than the 5.9%
recorded in 2015. It is expected to
grow between 6.5-7.5% for year
2017.
 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967

Source: PSA
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
trajectory since the beginning of current decade

2013
2014
PH economy has been on a sharply upward growth

2015
2016
2017
2018
 Philippines GDP Growth Rate

Philippine Economy Grows by 6.9 Percent in the The Philippines has a status of emerging economy. In
Third Quarter of 2017 recent years, the country has been steadily growing
mainly due to inflow of foreign direct investment and
remittances. The Philippines is the world’s largest
center for business process outsourcing. The country
also has a strong industrial sector based on the
manufacturing of electronics and other high-tech
components for overseas corporations. The Philippines
is rich in natural resources; it has significant reserves
of chromite, nickel, copper, coal and oil.
This page provides - Philippines GDP Growth Rate -
actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics,
economic calendar and news. Philippines GDP Growth
Rate - actual data, historical chart and calendar of
releases - was last updated on January of 2018
 Vibrant economy is generating more and better jobs
Unemployment and Underemployment rates (%) Employment generated 2000- 2015 (‘000)

Notes:
a/ The FY 2014 LFS estimate is the average of April, July and Oct rounds excluding Leyte data
b/ The FY 2015 LFS estimates is the average of the Jan to Oct 2015 rounds excluding Leyte data. FY 2015 employment generation estimate is the average of
April, July and Oct excluding Leyte data
c/ Not comparable with previous rounds of LFS; break in the data series due to change sin the Master Sample Design. Starting April 2016, the LFS used the 2013
MS Design, the 2010 Census of Population and Housing(CPH)-based population projections and the 2012 Philippine Standard Occupation Classification
(PSOC).
. *1997-2005: Adoption of population projection benchmark is based on the results of the 1995 Census
**2006-2015: Adoption of population projection benchmark based on the results of the 2000 Census
 Employed persons are classified as
either full-time workers or part-
time workers.  Full-time workers are
those who worked for 40 hours or
more in a week, while those who
worked for less than 40 hours were
considered part-time workers.

Underemployed persons who work

for less than 40 hours in a week are
called visibly underemployed
persons.  They accounted for 56.0
percent of the  total
underemployed in  2017
 The rapidly growing domestic economy has yielded
substantial gains in employment and poverty reduction.
This means growth became more inclusive. Unemployment fell to a historic low
of .2 percent in 2016, as 1.4 million net jobs were created. However, the
country’s 18 percent underemployment level has remained broadly unchanged
over the last ten years, reflecting the prevalence of informality and related job-
quality concerns.
The poverty incidence among Filipinos dropped to 21.6 percent in 2015 from
25.2 percent in 2012. This presents 1.8 million Filipinos lifted out of poverty
within three years. Higher employment, low inflation and improved incomes
contributed to the decline in the number of poor.
However…
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released the 2015 data on poverty in the
Philippines last October 2016. The country has lowered its poverty incidence by
3.6% from 25.2% in 2012 down to 21.6% in 2015. That means that one out of
every five Filipinos is poor or roughly 21.9 million Filipinos are living below the
poverty line.

For the poverty threshold, a Filipino needs at least a monthly average income of
PhP 1,813 to meet the basic food and non-food requirements.

In 2015, the ratio of poverty incidence among families fell from 19.7% in 2012 to
16.5%; making 3.8 million poor Filipino families. A family of 5 needs an average
monthly income of at least PhP 9,064 to meet the basic food and non-food
requirements. 8.1% of the Filipino population is classified under subsistence
incidence (the proportion of families/ individuals with per capita income less than
the per capita food).

*(see figures on next slide)*

 Philippines Inflation Rate

The central bank of Philippines left its

interest rate steady at 3 percent on March 23, 2017.  Inflation is
expected to remain within the target of 3.0 percent ±
1 percentage point in 2017-2018.

Despite the growth rates in the economy for the past years, unemployment rate is still highest in the
Southeast Asian Region. Poverty rates, though falling, has still not reached the target set for the Millennium
Development Goals of 2015. The Conditional Cash Transfer or Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) have
been implemented for almost a decade now starting with the Arroyo administration as the main anti-poverty
program. However, the present economic condition and the “trickle down economics” seems to be affecting
only the surface level. It presents a development paradox that while the economy is growing, income
inequality is widening and poverty remains stark especially in the countryside.
 The more difficult the economy, the greater the opportunities -- but only for
those who are strong, well-prepared and persistent. Many people are fixated by
national or even global economic doom and gloom. Many wait for a magic fix,
only to realize it will never come.

We are now in what I like to call an “eat what you kill" environment, where the
people who win are those who take the initiative without waiting for permission
to create their own success.
 The annual rise in the prices of goods
and services widely used by a typical Filipino
household is expected to pick up to 3.3% in 2017
and 3.0% in 2018 -- against the central
bank’s own 3.4% and 3.0% forecast averages for those years --
from 2016’s actual 1.8%, before easing
to 2.8% that still falls within the government’s 2-4% annual
inflation target range until 2020.

Inflation averaged 3.2% last quarter, still within the central bank’s 2-4% target band but below the
official forecast for the entire 2017. Relatively slow inflation, the World Bank said, “boosted
households’ purchasing power, while a steady increase in remittance inflows accelerated the growth of
household consumption.”

Mara K. Warwick, World Bank country director for the Philippines, noted in a separate statement
that “strong growth in recent years has been accompanied by job creation and a declining number of
people living in extreme poverty.”

“That means growth is becoming more inclusive.”

 Philippines Ranks As World’s 10th Fastest
Growing Economy In 2017
• The World Bank’s latest edition of Global Economic Prospects ranked the Philippines as the world’s
10th fastest growing economy in 2017.
• The Philippines is currently the 10th fastest economy not only in Asia but all around the world in
2017. The economy of the country is expected to reach 6.5 up to 7.5 this year, which is already
almost twice of its long-term growth.
• The annual growth rate of the Philippine economy from 1982 up to 2017 was only 3.68 percent. The
country’s economy reached its peak in 1998 with a growth of 12.4 percent and its lowest was
recorded during the first quarter of 1985 with a -11.1 percent.
• The low inflation and low debt to GDP ratio are some of the major factors causing the improvement of
the country’s economy. The stable macroeconomic environment of the country also helps to sustain
its healthy domestic demand growth.
• The export from the Philippines amounting $4.81 billion as of April 2017 is a good sing of improving
country’s economy showing a 12.1 percent increase from 2016. The International Monetary Fund
(IMF) has projected the Philippines to have the fastest economic growth in Asia for the next two years.
• The Philippines also shows a great signs of growth after it beats China’s (6.6%), Vietnam’s (6.5%),
Indonesia’s (5.1%), Malaysia’s (4.5%), Thailand’s (3%), Singapore’s (2.2%) as well as Taiwan’s (1.7%).
• The business community expects the country’s strong economic growth to be
sustained as long as the Duterte administration is able to adequately deliver on
its 10-point agenda.
• George T. Barcelon, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and
Industry, said the country’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals that helped
boost GDP growth in the third quarter showed that Mr. Duterte’s controversial
rhetoric had not done significant damage to the economy.
• Peter Angelo V. Perfecto, Makati Business Club executive director, said the
“growth momentum can be sustained if government can limit the noise and
focus on maximizing the competitive advantages from our young workforce,
tapping on the potentials of agriculture, pursuing tax reform, delivering on
infrastructure development and building peace in Mindanao and across the
country.” —WITH REPORTS FROM AMY R. REMO, MARLON RAMOS
AND AFP
Despite the fast growing economy of the Philippines,
the hard-working Filipinos remain poor due to
corruption and political oppression.

“Those who have followed the Philippines economy for a long time have seen a
familiar show: hard-working Filipinos remain poor, watching the people of
other nations in the region get rich. Revolutions come and go in the Philippines,
but the old villains — corruption and political oppression — remain intact,
holding Filipinos back from making the transition from poverty to riches,”
wrote by Forbes quoted by Summit Express.
 Need for behavioral
change…
always aim for a common goal: diversity towards unity – an exemplar that could be
followed by all citizenry – toward achieving poverty- and inequality-reducing economic
growth!

Should any of these medium-term risks materialize, the World Bank said, “efforts would need to
be intensified to preserve the country’s investment-grade ratings.”

Besides unclogging infrastructure planning and implementation bottlenecks and timely approval
of tax reforms in order to support planned bigger state spending, the multilateral lender said
sustaining and enhancing the inclusiveness of overall economic growth will require other
structural reforms like removing restrictions on competition and foreign investment as well as
other obstacles to doing business “which continue to discourage private investment.”
-- Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan
Over the medium term, the Philippines can leverage several emerging
trends to accelerate its growth and development, including the potential
of its very young and growing population and capitalizing on its growing
services sector to accelerate its structural economic transformation.

Sustaining the inclusive pattern of recent growth and taking advantage of

the potential of its young population offers a brief window of opportunity
which will require an enduring commitment to structural reforms that
facilitate, on one hand, private investment, and, on the other hand, helps
young workers to develop the appropriate skills to succeed in a dynamic
labor market.
Thank you for watching! 