Recto sees modest Q1 GDP growth at 5.8-6.3% By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto
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THE WORLD | A13
US MILITARY BUILDS $320 MILLION FLOATING PIER TO BOOST AID DELIVERY TO BESIEGED GAZA STRIP
INANCE Secretary Ralph G. Recto is expecting the economy to have grown by at least 5.8 to 6.3 percent from January to March this year as the first quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data is set to be released on May 9. Recto told reporters on Monday afternoon that he is just being realistic in setting his GDP
ex pectations by star ting the band from below 6 percent. The Philippine economy posted a 6.4-percent growth in the first quarter of 2023, which the Finance chief took into consideration since it will start from a high base. “So if we achieve 5.8 [percent], maganda na rin yun [that is good too] starting from a high base,” Recto said. Recto added that there’s a
possibility of hitting 6 percent, and, when lucky, the economy’s growth could settle at 6.3 percent for the first quarter. “There’s nothing I can do about the first quarter, not to say inflation…So we’re looking at how do we improve it in the second, t h i rd , a nd fou r t h qu a r ter — moving for ward,” Recto said. The DBCC cut its GDP growth target to 6 to 7 percent from its
previous projection of 6.5 to 7.5 percent to take account of last year’s fiscal performance and recent developments in the global economy. For 2025, the economic team also narrowed its real GDP growth targets to 6.5 to 7.5 percent from the previous 6.5 to 8.0 percent. The DBCC retained its growth See “GDP,” A
A broader look at today’s business Q
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APRIL INFLATION LIKELY
AT 3.5-4.3%–BSP FORECAST By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario
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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) projects that inflation may have risen further due not only to higher rice and oil prices, but also the recent depreciation of the Philippine peso. In its Month-Ahead inflation forecast, BSP said inflation may have settled within the 3.5 to 4.3 percent range in April 2024. This is higher than the inflation target of 2 to 4 percent this year. The BSP earlier forecasted that March inflation would average 3.4 to 4.2 percent, making the latest forecast the second consecutive time the central bank expected the inflation print to exceed its target this year. “Continued price increases for rice and meat along with higher gasoline prices and the peso depreciation are the primary sources of upward price pressures for the month,” BSP said. However, BSP said April may have also seen lower prices of fish, fruits, vegetables as lower electricity rates and the rollback in LPG prices could offset the upside price pressures. In the Month-Ahead forecast of the BSP for March, the peso appreciation was cited as one of the factors that could help ease inf lation. However, the peso has been taking a beating and closed at P57.8 to the greenback on Monday. “Going forward, the BSP will continue to monitor developments
DAM COOL Amidst Southeast Asia’s blistering heat wave, local tourists seek solace at Wawa Dam (also known as Montalban Dam), a gravity dam built over the Marikina River in Rodriguez, Rizal. Nestled in the 360-meter-high Wawa Gorge, a water gap within the Sierra Madre Mountains, visitors cool off in its cascading waters on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Pagasa, the state weather bureau, has been recording the region’s hottest temperatures, with metropolitan Manila hitting a record-breaking 38.8°C last Saturday. NONOY LACZA
See “Inflation,” A
‘ASIAN CENTRAL BANKS SHOULD FOCUS ON DOMESTIC DEMAND’
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HE International Monetary Fund (IMF) believes Asian central banks, like the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), would be better aided in their monetary policymaking by tracking domestic demand than following in the footsteps of the US Federal Reserve. In a briefing on Tuesday, IMF Asia and Pacific Department Director Krishna Srinivasan said it is better for Asian central banks to train their policies on local conditions that have significant impact on inflation.
BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. has stressed that the actions taken by the US Federal Reserve are treated as “data” for the Monetar y Board and will not solely define the actions of the monetar y authorities. “When faced with such volatility, central banks should focus on fundamentals and here, what I mean is that they should orient their policies to not too rigidly [adhere] to expectation about US interest rates,” Srinivasan said. See “IMF,” A
PBBM to DTI: Help MSME in AI use to be competitive
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RESIDENT Ferdinand R. Ma rcos Jr. is now e ye ing Artificial Intelligence (AI) to boost the competitiveness of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME). In a sectoral meeting on Tuesday, the chief executive ordered the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to introduce the MSMEs to the new technology to improve their efficiency. “Don’t teach the theory that goes on behind it, but just teach what it is that they need to use the AI. That’s the whole point of AI, you just talk, that’s where we want to get them to,” Marcos said. Several free-to-use AI systems such as ChatGPT can be used for
performing multiple tasks such as translation, content creation, data organizing, and research. Under the fourth version of its Development Plan, DTI aims to e x ped ite t he “ integ rat ion of technology and innovation” for MSMEs. The plan includes providing MSMEs access to autom ated business regulator y processes and transactions, innovative financing methods, reskilling and upskilling for their management, access to public-private partnership (PPP). It also includes connectivity; business resilience; circular See “AI,” A
PESO EXCHANGE RATES Q US 57.6970 Q JAPAN 0.3691 Q UK 72.4790 Q HK 7.3737 Q CHINA 7.9857 Q SINGAPORE 42.4492 Q AUSTRALIA 37.8839 Q EU 61.8570 Q KOREA 0.0420 Q SAUDI ARABIA 15.3838 Source:
BSP 30 April 2024