Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said he expects the economy to grow within the target band of 5.8 percent to 6.3 percent in the first quarter of this year.
These estimates were based on the high base effect from last year wherein the economy grew by 6.4 percent during the first quarter, Recto said.
“Anything higher than 5.5 (percent) is a win. Because last year, you grew by 5.5. So if you grow by 5.8, that's good enough. That should be one of the highest in the region, if not one of the highest in the world,” he told reporters at the sidelines of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority and Maharlika Investment Corporation memorandum of agreement signing.
To support the economic targets of six percent to seven percent for this year, the government has increased the budget for the Department of Agriculture (DA) to P197.84 billion, up by six percent from the previous year's budget allocation of P186.54 billion.
It also hiked the contributions of government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCC) to 75 percent of their annual net earnings last year from 50 percent.
Republic Act 7656, which is commonly referred to as the Dividends Law, requires GOCCs to remit a minimum of 50 percent of their net earnings to the national government.
Recto earlier said that the government does not see the need for implementing tax measures this year and will instead look for other ways to increase revenues such as promoting the Ease of Paying Taxes law.
Furthermore, the DOF chief said he will meet with officials of the DA, along with the Development Budget and Coordination Committee (DBCC), to discuss interventions for food inflation.
For April's inflation rate, Recto said he remains firm with the two-percent to four-percent target band, but expects this to be breached again from last month's readout.
The country’s inflation rate has been swelling for two months this year, with the March readout standing at 3.7 percent from the 3.4 percent in the previous month brought about by increasing food prices, especially on rice.
Meanwhile, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) estimated inflation to grow between 3.5 percent to 4.3 percent in April.