THE Philippine economy experienced modest quarter-on-quarter growth in the second quarter of 2025, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
While the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) saw a slight increase of 5.5% compared to the previous quarter (5.4% in Q1 2025), this represents a deceleration from the 6.5% growth observed in the same period of 2024.
This marks the fastest growth in four quarters, however, it still falls short of last year’s performance. All major sectors—agriculture, forestry, and fishing (7.0%); industry (2.1%); and services (6.9%)—contributed to the annual growth. Key drivers included wholesale and retail trade, public administration, financial and insurance activities, and robust fixed capital investments, particularly in private construction and durable equipment.
Despite the positive sectoral contributions, the year-on-year growth was tempered by factors such as a slower government spending rate (8.7% in Q2 2025 compared to 18.7% in Q1 2025), attributed by the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DepDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan to the election spending ban.
However, this slowdown was partially offset by a surge in household spending (9.5% growth), fueled by election-related activities.
While exports showed positive growth (4.4%, exceeding import growth of 2.9%), a decline in services exports (4.2%) reflected ongoing global economic uncertainties. The overall picture suggests a resilient but uneven economic performance, with the government anticipating improved public construction spending in the second half of the year to maintain economic momentum.
metrosundaily
