Philippine economy expands 4.4% in Q3

Philippine economy expands 4.4% in Q3

Associated Press, Manila

The Philippine economy grew by 4.4 percent on year during the third quarter of 2003, outperforming Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore and South Korea, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said Thursday.

Gross national product rose by 5.9 percent on year during the same period.

Arroyo said agriculture and investment spending led the way, with macroeconomic fundamentals and sustained agricultural modernization paying off, and overseas remittances on the rise.

"We are shaking off the lethargy occasioned by SARS, the Iraq war and El Nino," the weather phenomenon, Arroyo said, adding that confidence in the country's political stability has held steady after the resolution of a failed coup in July.

She said she will keep up her government's efforts to reconcile with various sectors of society.

"The fourth quarter will definitely push the blue line upward if we keep on track, shun destructive politics and unite in all fronts of national security and nation-building," she added.

The figures show stronger growth than some of its Asian neighbors. Taiwan's gross domestic product in the July-September quarter grew 4.18 percent from a year earlier, Indonesia's expanded 3.93 percent, and Singapore's grew 1.7 percent. South Korea's central bank has previously said it expects the country's GDP to grow 2.7 percent in the third quarter.

The latest economic data puts the Philippines just above the government's projected minimum 4.2 percent GDP growth forecast for 2003, and outpaces economists' expectations.

A Dow Jones Newswires survey of eight economists before the release of the official data estimated GDP, the value of all goods and services produced, to have risen 4 percent on year in the three months to September, in line with Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri's earlier estimate.