MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine economy continued to expand in the first quarter of the year, posting a 5.4 percent growth, with Wholesale and retail trade, as well as repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles as the main contributors, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
In a briefing on Thursday, National Statistician Dennis Mapa said the economy slightly ticked up to 5.4 percent in the first quarter of 2025 from 5.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024.
The Philippine economy also surpassed other major economies in Southeast Asia during the period.
“We ranked second among our Asian peers that have already released their first quarter figures, trailing Vietnam at 6.9 percent, but tying it up with China, 5.4 percent, while outpacing Indonesia 4.9 percent, Malaysia 4.4 percent, and Thailand forecasted to grow at 2.8 percent," Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a speech delivered by Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon.
"And this performance underscores the relative resilience of our economy in the face of global volatility," Balisacan added.
Aside from wholesale and retail trade, and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, which posted 6.4 percent growth in the first quarter of the year, the PSA mentioned that financial and insurance activities recorded 7.2 percent, while manufacturing contributed to the growth with 4.1 percent.
“All major economic sectors, namely Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, Industry, and Services posted year-on-year growths in the first quarter of 2025 with 2.2 percent, 4.5 percent, and 6.3 percent, respectively,” PSA stated.
“On the demand side, Household Final Consumption Expenditure grew year-on-year by 5.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025. The following items also recorded year-on-year growths: Government Final Consumption Expenditure, 18.7 percent; Gross capital formation, 4.0 percent; Exports of goods and services, 6.2 percent; and Imports of goods and services, 9.9 percent,” PSA added.
According to the PSA, the Gross National Income grew year-on-year by 7.5 percent in the first quarter of 2025. Likewise, Net Primary Income from the Rest of the World posted year-on-year growth of 24.6 percent during the period.
Meanwhile, Balisacan assured the public that the government will continue to push for reforms to sustain growth.
"This is no reason for complacency. On the contrary, the first quarter's performance reinforces the urgency of strategic policymaking, accelerated structural reforms toward economic diversification, and efficient and effective delivery of programs, projects, as we near the midterm of the Marcos administration," he said.
Balisacan also reiterated the government’s commitment in ensuring that consumer prices remain “stable” and that inflation remains “manageable.”
