Shrugging off the economic downturn

ON Thursday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its growth forecast for the Philippine economy from 6.7 percent to 6.2 percent, citing the slower-than-expected start to the year and weakening global demand.

The less positive outlook was widely anticipated, as the IMF had announced it was reviewing its analysis after GDP growth in the first quarter checked in at a disappointing 5.2 percent annual rate. The IMF now joins the World Bank, major ratings firms Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, and numerous banks – just about everyone, in fact, except for the ever-optimistic Aquino government – in lowering its expectations for 2015.