President Marcos' economic team plans to reassess the country's macroeconomic assumptions following a significant slowdown in consumer prices, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said.
Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman said that the economic managers might consider revising the 2024 gross domestic product (GDP) target upward from the current 6.0 to 7.0 percent range.
Pangandaman already called for a special meeting of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), an inter-agency body responsible for setting the government's macroeconomic assumptions.
“Of course we want to hit our GDP target. So given this new development, I actually already asked the team if maybe we can have a special DBCC again, and we'll try to look at the numbers,” Pangandaman told reporters.
Pangandaman also expressed optimism that inflation is likely to ease in the fourth quarter.
The country's GDP growth accelerated to 6.3 percent in the second quarter of 2024, bringing the first-half growth rate to 6.0 percent, positioning it well within the 6.0 to 7.0 percent target for the year.
Earlier in April, the DBCC lowered the 2024 GDP growth target down from an initial estimate of 6.5 to 7.5 percent, citing economic performance and global factors such as trade dynamics, oil prices, and inflation trends.
Notably, the inflation rate plunged to 1.9 percent in September, marking the lowest level since May 2020.
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said that “the recent fall in inflation and policy rates and the robust labor market are expected to buoy domestic demand."
The plan to review the numbers is particularly influenced by the nearing finalization of the national budget, Pangandaman said.
“It is a special off-cycle meeting this quarter, especially that the budget is going to be passed soon,” the budget chief said
“So maybe we can review our targets again, and hopefully we will catch up on all the targets,” she concluded. (Derco Rosal)