The Department of Finance (DOF) said that meeting the government’s economic growth target this year has become more certain, given the sustained recovery of domestic demand and improved labor market conditions.
Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said the government would meet the 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent gross domestic product (GDP) goal for 2022, citing that the economy already grew faster than the target band in the first nine months alone.
“Our economic prospects are bright. With an average growth of 7.7 percent in the first three quarters of this year, we are near certain that we will achieve our target growth of 6.5 to 7.5 percent for this year,” Diokno said.
“The strong growth was driven by the continuous recovery of the domestic economy and improving labor market conditions,” he added.
The local labor market improved in September with a total of 47.6 million Filipinos were employed, translating to a 9.2 percent growth from 43.6 million in the same period last year.
"We will focus on creating more jobs, quality jobs, and green jobs as a recovery strategy. These will be achieved through higher investments in smart infrastructure, human capital development, and the digitalization of the economy,” Diokno said.
In 2021, the Philippines emerged from the pandemic-induced recession with a GDP growth of 5.7 percent, reversing the 9.6 percent contraction in the previous year.
Aside from economic growth, Diokno also said that investor confidence was steadily rebounding, with foreign direct investment inflows reached a record-high $12.4 billion last year, while gross international reserves (GIR) climbed to $94 billion at end-October.
The GIR is more than sufficient to cover 7.5 months’ worth of imports and payment of services, above the three-month threshold.
Revenues are also on the rise, due in large part to the digitalization efforts of the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs, Diokno said.
For the first nine months of 2022, total revenue collection reached P2.7 trillion, up by 19 percent from last year.
“We expect revenue collections to already exceed the pre-pandemic level by the end of the year,” Diokno said. “To sustain these gains while safeguarding the economy from ongoing risks, we have assembled the necessary tools to decisively respond to current difficulties.”
"Guided by a comprehensive eight-point socioeconomic agenda, the Philippine government stands ready to steer the economy to its high-growth trajectory,” he added.