IMF REVISED PHILIPPINES ECONOMY GROWING TO 6% IN 2024

On the visit of International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in Manila, it said that the growth forecast of the Philippines economy is expected this year. For the second time this year, the growth forecast was revised amid weaker-than-expected household consumptions and investments.

IMF mission chief Elif Arbatli-Saxegaard said that the Philippine economy is expected to grow by 6 percent in 2024 which is lower than its 6.2 percent forecast as of April. The household spending and investment figures fell below what was anticipated in the January to March period forcing them to revise anew. 

Lowered growth forecast for the country this year, economy expanding for 2024 (Photo courtesy of ABS-CBN News)

"Growth is expected to rebound to 6 percent in 2024 and 6.2 percent in 2025, on the back of stronger consumption demand, higher public and private investment, and a recovery in exports," Saxegaard said.

The IMF mission chief said that they expect growth to pick up for next year and include the continued pickup in domestic demand, investment and consumption. “Some of the factors, includes continued decline in inflation as well as the monetary policy easing that is associated with that, will be probably even more supportive in 2025, given the lag.”

Saxegaard said that it is very important that the BSP monitor what's happening domestically. It policy advice, “BSP should maintain a sufficiently restrictive policy stance to firmly bring inflation within the target band.”

“So, over the medium term, over the coming year, that opens up space for the BSP to slightly loosen or gradually reduce its policy rates that would still maintain its policy stance restrictive enough to anchor inflation expectations,” she added.

“The push for investment, that's true because there's a lot of efforts on the way and a lot of legislative reforms that were already implemented, that were already passed and they will be implemented over time. So a lot of these impacts and maybe higher FDI (foreign direct investments) and investments, private investments, will also play out in a more strong way in 2025 than in 2024,” Saxegaard stated.

Source: Philippine News Agency

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