Household consumption, the country’s economic backbone, was adversely affected by higher commodity prices. For 2019, however, the delayed passage of the budget and the election spending ban may knock a few percentage points off economic growth. To keep the momentum going, economic managers are seeking an exemption for priority public works projects from the election ban. For 2019, the World Bank expects economic growth to improve to 6.5 percent, while ADB projects an expansion of 6.7 percent. Meanwhile, economic managers continue to push for an ambitious target: a GDP growth of at least 7 percent.

Source: Philippine Star February 23, 2019 02:43 UTC