MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine economy expanded quicker last year as draconian COVID-19 quarantine and lockdown measures were eased further, according to a poll of major bank economists.
According to Michael Ricafort, chief economist of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., the country's GDP increased by 7.8 percent last year after rising by eight percent in the fourth quarter.
This is significantly higher than the 6.5 to 7.5 percent growth objective set for 2022 by economic managers through the Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).
The Philippines emerged from the pandemic-induced recession with 5.7 percent GDP growth in 2021, after a 9.6 percent drop in 2020 when the economy stopped due to the COVID-19 lockdowns.
"With the stability of the GDP base (no more lockdowns in 2022), the Philippine GDP growth projection for 2023 might normalize to around six to 6.5 percent in 2023 and beyond," Ricafort added.
According to Ricafort, reduced individual income tax rates for the majority of income groups beginning in January will contribute to more consumer spending, quicker economic growth, and help mitigate the negative consequences of rising prices and inflation.
Furthermore, Ricafort stated that attempts to reopen the economy to greater normalcy resulted in improved sales, profits, and employment, overshadowing the threats of rising interest rates amid aggressive rate rises provided by both the US Federal Reserve and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
The head economist of the Yuchengco-led RCBC also referenced the peso's 15.7 percent drop to an all-time low of 59 to $1 in October before rebounding to the 54 to $1 mark lately.
According to ING Bank senior economist Nicholas Mapa, the economy expanded at a quicker pace of 7.7 percent last year, up from 7.5 percent between October and December.
