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By Darwin G. Amojelar, Reporter
PHILIPPINE economic managers have revised
downwards the country’s economic growth goal while raising its
inflation target this year owing to costlier food and fuel,
government sources said.
The interagency Development and Budget
Coordinating Committee revised its gross domestic product (GDP)
growth target this year to between 5.5 percent and 6.4 percent from
an earlier range of 5.7 percent to 6.5 percent. GDP refers to the
total value of goods and services produced in a country in a year.
Sources said the DBCC slashed the GDP target
this year owing to soaring inflation and global economic slowdown.
The Asian Development Bank in July projected
that the country’s economic growth is likely to grow 5.5 percent
this year owing to softer global demand for exports and soaring rice
and fuel prices that could dampen consumer spending.
In the first quarter, economic expansion slowed
to 5.2 percent owing to rising oil prices, the slowdown in the US
economy and the negative effects of a strong peso. A year ago, GDP
had risen 7 percent.
Due to costlier oil, consumer price increases
could pick up within a range of 9 percent to 11 percent from 7
percent to 9 percent.
According to the Department of Energy, oil
benchmark Dubai crude averaged $116.17 a barrel as of August 13 from
last month’s average of $131.27 a barrel.
In July, the inflation rate hit 12.2 percent,
the highest in 17 years. This brought the average rise in prices to
8.3 percent in the first seven months this year.
For oil, economic managers expect Dubai crude to
cost anywhere between $115 and $125 a barrel this year.
The DBCC has assumed the peso to average between
42 and 45 for every dollar this year.
The inter-agency body, which sets the
country’s macroeconomic goals, decided to maintain its exports and
imports growth targets to 5 percent and 10 percent, respectively.
The National Statistics Office earlier reported
that exports in the first half rose 4 percent to $25.578 billion
from $24.600 billion during the same period last year.
Imports in the first five months rose 16.57
percent to $24.25 billion from last year’s $20.79 billion, largely
on account of costlier fuel and food imports.
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