Philippines cuts economic growth 2021

The Philippines lowered its economic growth target for this year, reflecting the impact of a two-week lockdown of the capital region to contain the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant, a government inter-agency said on Wednesday.

This year’s growth target was cut to 4.0 per cent to 5.0 per cent, from 6.0 per cent to 7.0 per cent expected previously, the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) said in a statement.

Next year’s growth target was kept at 7.0 per cent to 9.0 per cent.

The downgrade was still a significant improvement from last year’s record contraction of 9.6 per cent.

“Our strategy is to continue managing the risks carefully by imposing granular quarantines, while allowing a vast number of people to earn a living,” the DBCC said.