Pervasive corruption in the Philippines is preventing the country from realizing its full economic potential, despite President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. making “steady progress” on his reform agenda, according to the think tank Capital Economics. In its Asia Economic Outlook report for the...
While government debt continued to pile up, private businesses and individuals in the Philippines held back on borrowings amid conditions not too conducive to debt accumulation. The latest data from the Washington-based Institute of International Finance (IIF), released on Thursday, Sept. 25,...
Despite an increase in the Philippines’ general government (GG) debt-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio to 57.1 percent in 2024, the Marcos Jr. administration is targeting to gradually lower this debt ratio to the 54-percent level by the end of 2028. This was indicated in the national...
The Tokyo-based think tank Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) has flagged rising post-pandemic debt repayments in developing economies across the region, including the Philippines, which are depriving governments of more funding for public goods and services. “Between 2008 and 2019, annual...
The share of tax revenues to the Philippine economy has lingered below the regional average of efficient collections, highlighting the need to further improve tax administration and enforcement. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Revenue Statistics in Asia and the...
The Department of Finance (DOF) said the Marcos administration has been prudently managing the Philippines’ swollen debt stock, which was bloated by the ₱6.84 trillion added by the Duterte regime during the Covid-19 pandemic. In a statement released on Thursday, June 5, the DOF said the...
The Philippines ' annual economic growth is expected by the World Bank Group (WBG) to remain below six percent this year until 2031. Its newest country partnership framework (CPF) for the Philippines, covering fiscal years (FYs) 2026 to 2031, showed that the WBG forecasts Philippine gross...
While the share of the Philippine government's budget deficit and debt to the economy are going down and "stabilizing," respectively, the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) is urging fiscal authorities across the region to remain prudent in spending on public goods and services as a...
The news of the country's debt nearing P15 trillion is undoubtedly alarming. It raises the question of why the government continues to borrow extensively, despite its significant indebtedness. While many Filipinos tend to avoid borrowing, viewing debt as inherently negative and a sign of poor...
Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto has dismissed worries about the country's ballooning debt stock, affirming the government's capability to meet all maturing financial obligations. Recto said that the current total government debt, which amounted to P14.51 trillion as of November last year,...
The target ratio for the country’s debt as a share of the gross domestic product (GDP) for the medium term is attainable, Department of Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said. In a panel discussion with the Philippines’ economic managers, Diokno said that the government’s target ratio will...
Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said that the government is firm on reducing the country’s budget deficit-to-gross domestic product (GDP) to three percent by 2028. This after credit rating agency Fitch Ratings noted the country’s general government deficit to narrow to...
