THE ECONOMY grew slower than previously estimated in the first quarter, the government reported ahead of the release of second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data today.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said its latest estimate shows that first-quarter GDP — which measures the value of final goods and services produced in a country — went up by 6.6%, lower than the 6.8% that was reported last May.
Four subsectors that recorded notable downward adjustments were: “other services” (revised to 6.9% from 8.8%), construction (8.8% from 9.3%), manufacturing (7.6% from 8%), and agriculture and forestry (1.9% from 2.4%).
A BusinessWorld poll of 15 economists and analysts yielded a median estimate of 6.8% for the April-June period. If realized, this figure would take first-semester average growth to 6.8%, a few points shy of reaching the 7-8% government target for full-year 2018. Some economic managers last month aired hopes for second-quarter GDP growth of seven percent. — M. T. Amoguis

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