We are reposting this report to correct data on the mining and quarrying industry in the first quarter of 2013.

The earlier version reported that the industry grew by 17 percent. The truth is it actually contracted by 17 percent. ) MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has the fastest growing economy among Asian countries for the first quarter of 2013, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) announced Thursday. NSCB announced that the countrys gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7.8 percent in the first quarter of 2013, faster than China (7.7 percent), Indonesia (6 percent), Thailand (5.3 percent), and Vietnam (4.9 percent), Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning of the Philippines Arsenio Balisacan said in a press conference aired live on television Thursday. NSCB attributed the 7.8 percent increase in the GDP of the country to the strong performance of the manufacturing and construction sectors, as well as the increase in government and consumer spending. Officials said that the quarterly growth rate was the highest since reformist President Benigno Aquino III took office in 2010 on a promise to fight corruption and cut poverty. Aquinos allies won majorities in both houses of Congress in elections early this month, making it possible for Aquino to push through with his legislative agenda in the remaining three years in power. The Philippines has bucked a regional trend of slowing growth amid recession in Europe and a slow recovery in the United States. It expanded faster than Asian powerhouse China, where the economy unexpectedly slowed to 7.7 percent growth in the first quarter. The industry sector, composed of mining, manufacturing, and construction, grew by 10.9 percent, higher than the recorded 5.3 and 8.9 percent during the first and last quarter of 2012. The Mining and Quarrying industry contracted by 17 percent in Q1 of 2013, compared to 1.7 and 2.8 percent increase in the first and last quarter of the previous year. Manufacturing industry grew by 9.7 percent this year, higher that the 6 and 5.5 percent in the first and last quarter of 2012. Construction industry, meanwhile, further increased to 32.5 percent compared to 29.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012. The services and agriculture sectors also contributed to the growth with 7 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively. Balisacan said the Philippines hopes to achieve a target of 7 percent to 8 percent annual growth by 2016. The fourth-quarter 2012 growth was revised from 6.8 percent to 7.1 percent. In 2012, the economy grew 6.8 percent. Despite the impressive growth figures, the Philippines faces many challenges. Among them, the global slowdown, excessive capital inflows and natural disasters, an annual occurrence in the Southeast Asian country where poor infrastructure and rice fields suffer damage from typhoons and floods.

Employees work on a construction site in Manila. AFP FILE PHOTO

Disasters can negate the gains and even push back development. Moreover, the global economy remains fragile, negatively affecting our trade performance, Balisacan told reporters. Due to the attractive investment opportunities, we are also at risk of receiving too much capital inflows as advanced economies implement quantitative easing. The challenge is to channel these inflows into productive investment s, he said. Increased consumer and government spending was accompanied by investment in construction, the National Statistical Coordination Board said. Domestic consumption remained the main driver of growth, fueled by remittances from about 10 million overseas Filipino workers. Last year, they sent back $24 billion, which accounts for 10 percent of the countrys economic output. It makes the Philippines the third largest recipient of remittances in the world, after India and China and on par with Mexico. There has been little progress in job creation. The Asian Development Bank says that nearly half of those working within the country are classified as vulnerable unpaid family workers and the self-employed, mostly in the informal

sector. Economists have urged the government to diversify the economy by revamping the educational system and providing employment opportunities in manufacturing. The proliferation of call centers has made outsourcing one of the fastest growing industries with revenue of $11 billion in 2011. But for the large pool of unskilled labor, those jobs are out of reach. Poverty rates remain high, with about a third of the population living on $2 a day. Balisacan said that the government understood that for growth to be inclusive, the poor must be linked to the growth industries. The faster this can be done, the better it will be for the greater number of our people, he said. With reports from Associated Press, DZIQ Radyo Inquirer 990AM (Originally posted 10:41 a.m. May 30, 2013)

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The Philippines has the fastest growing economy among Asian countries for the first quarter of 2013, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) said. NSCB announced that the countrys gross domestic product grew by 7.8 percent in the first quarter of 2013, faster than China (7.7 percent), Indonesia (6 percent), Thailand (5.3 percent), and Vietnam (4.9 percent), Secretary of Socioeconomic Planning of the Philippines Arsenio Balisacan said. NSCB attributed the 7.8 percent increase in the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country to the strong performance of the manufacturing and construction sectors, as well as the increase in government and consumer spending. This was the second fastest growth rate of the country since the 8.9 percent GDP growth rate in one quarter in 2010, Balisacan said. The industry sector, composed of mining, manufacturing, and construction, grew by 10.9 percent, higher than the recorded 5.3 and 8.9 percent during the first and last quarter of 2012. The Mining and Quarrying industry grew by 17 percent in Q1 of 2013, an exponential increase compared to 1.7 and 2.8 percent in the first and last quarter of the previous year. Manufacturing industry grew by 9.7 percent this year, higher that the 6 and 5.5 percent in the first and last quarter of 2012. Construction industry, meanwhile, further increased to 32.5 percent compared to 29.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012. The services and agriculture sectors also contributed to the growth with 7 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.

http://goodnewspilipinas.com/2013/05/31/philippines-is-asias-fastest-growing-economy-in-q1-2013/

30 May 2013

National Accounts, Q1 and Annual 2011- 2012

PHILIPPINE ECONOMY POSTS 7.8 PERCENT GDP GROWTH

With the upbeat business and consumer sentiment, as well as sustained government capital expenditure, the Philippine economy posted a 7.8 percent GDP growth in the first quarter of 2013 from 6.5 percent the previous year. The Q1 growth is the highest so far under the Aquino administration and also the third consecutive quarter of more than 7.0 percent GDP growth. The robust growth was boosted by the strong performance of Manufacturing and Construction, backed up by Financial Intermediation and Trade. On the demand side, increased consumer and government spending shored up by increased investments in Construction and Durable Equipment contributed to the highest quarterly GDP growth since the second quarter of 2010. The continued inflow of remittances from our overseas workers accelerated the Net Primary Income from the Rest of the World to grow by 3.2 percent boosting the Gross National Income (GNI) growth to 7.1 percent from 5.7 percent in 2012. On a seasonally adjusted basis, GDP is gaining momentum growing by 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013; GNI grew by 1.9 percent. All major sectors posted positive growth in seasonally adjusted terms for the first quarter of 2013. In particular, the entire Agriculture sector posted a growth of 0.8 percent in the first quarter of 2013 from 0.4 percent the previous quarter. However, Industry slowed down to 2.5 percent growth in the first quarter of 2013 from 4.0 percent in the previous quarter. But the Services sector accelerated to 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013 from 1.1 percent in the previous quarter as all its subsectors recorded positive growth. Positive growth in seasonally adjusted terms across major sectors has been resulting since the fourth quarter of 2010. With the countrys projected population reaching 96.8 million in the first quarter of 2013, per capita GDP grew by 6.1 percent while per capita GNI grew by 5.3 percent and per capita Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) grew by 3.4 percent. JOSE RAMON G. ALBERT Secretary General, NSCB

http://www.nscb.gov.ph/sna/2013/1st2013/2013qpr1.asp

The Philippines is a developing country. In 1997, the per capita gross national product (GNP) was P34,365 while the per capita gross domestic product (GDP) was P32,961. By 2003, the per capitaGNPhas increased to P56,109 and the per capitaGDPto P52,241. The economy grew at a faster rate in the 1990s than in the 1980s. From 1988 to 1997, the countrys GNP grew at an annual average of 4.1 percent while the GDP went up by an average of 3.4 percent. It improved in 2002-2003 as GNP growth rate increased to 5.6 percent andGDPto 4.7 percent (NSCB 2005). In 2000, the annual per capita poverty threshold was estimated at P11, 605, an 18 percent increase over the 1997 threshold of P9, 843. With this threshold, a family of five members should have a monthly income of P4, 835 to meet its food and non-food basic needs. Average annual family income reached P148, 757 in 2003, increasing by 2.5 percent over the P145,121 average in 2000. As earnings rose across all income levels, poverty among Filipino families dropped by almost three percentage points from the 27.5 percent revised estimate for 2000 down to 24.7 percent in 2003 (NSCB 2005). Unemployment and underemployment rates have increased in the past three years. Unemployment rate stood at 10.2 percent in October 2002, it has gone up to 10.9 percent as of October 2004. Underemployment has also gone up from 15.3 percent in October 2002 to 16.9 percent in October 2004. Average inflation rate has also gone up from 3.5 percent in 2003 to six percent in 2004 (NSO 2004). In 2003, the GDP was mainly from the service sector (43 percent), followed by the industry sector (31 percent) and the agriculture, fishery and forestry sector (18 percent). Traditionally, the economy depends on agriculture, fishing, forestry and mining. In recent years the service sector and the manufacturing sector have grown rapidly. The service sector, which include education, transportation and communication, property, health, housing and government services, account for the biggest sector of the economy. They employ the bulk of the workforce. The manufacturing sector has also grown rapidly, with the food and beverage, electrical and electronic components and production of garments, wood products and furniture as major industries. Our overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have also contributed their share to the countrys economy. From 1987 to 2002, compensation income (inflows) from overseas workers totaled P406.2 billion or 3 percent of the totalGNPfor the period covered. Major imports include machinery and equipment, oil and petroleum products, chemicals and semi-processed materials. The major trading partners of the Philippines have remained to be the United States, Japan, the European community and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). China is emerging as a major trading partner in recent years.
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