ECONOMIC managers could change this year’s growth target given improvements in the inflation outlook, a Cabinet official said on Monday.
The gross domestic product growth (GDP) goal for 2024 currently stands at 6.0-7.0 percent. The Interagency Development Budget Coordination Council (DBCC) cut this from 6.5-7.5 percent in April, citing global trade disruptions and geopolitical tensions, and reaffirmed it in June.
While geopolitical tensions have since increased, other indicators such as inflation have improved. Consumer price growth, which was threatening to breach the 2.0- to 4.0-percent target ahead of the June DBCC meeting, markedly slowed to 1.9 percent last month.
Secretary Amenan Pangandaman
“I actually asked the team already; maybe we can have a special DBCC [meeting] again and we’ll try to look at the numbers,” Budget Secretary Amenan Pangandaman told reporters.
“It’s a special meeting, [an] off-cycle meeting … maybe this quarter,” she added.
“Especially that the budget [for next year] is going to be passed soon … maybe we can review again our targets…”.
The current 2024 growth goal is the same as last year. As of end-June, GDP growth was at the lower end of the 6.0- to 7.0 percent target and economic managers have expressed confidence that the full-year result will not fall below 6.0 percent.
After a below-target 5.8 percent in the first quarter, economic growth picked up to 6.3 percent in April-June on the back of higher government consumption.
The 2025 target, meanwhile, was also narrowed to 6.5-7.5 percent in April from 6.5-8.0 percent previously, and that for 2026 was retained at 6.5-8.0 percent.
Pangandaman said the targets “can [be] revised upward” following lower-than-expected September inflation and a growth uptick in the third quarter.
Preliminary GDP data for the July-September period will be released on November 7.
Economic growth, Pangandaman said, will continue to be driven by robust government spending.
“On the part of the DBM (Department of Budget and Management) and the national government agencies, we are closely monitoring their expenses and utilization,” she said.
“[H]opefully, these agencies are able to fully use their budgets. By this time, they should have completed procurement. Now it’s all about implementation. So, I hope that, again, this contributes to our growth,” he added.
Underspending by the government was said to have been a factor in 2023’s below-target GDP growth of 5.5 percent.
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