Industryweek 6698 Philippinesflag 1

Philippine Economy to Double in Next Decade

May 19, 2014
The economy will grow from its present level of about $280 billion to $680 billion by 2024, with a projected GDP of $1.2 trillion by 2030, according to IHS.

MANILA -- As earnings from overseas workers and business outsourcing surge the Philippine economy will more than double in the next decade as earnings from overseas workers and business outsourcing surge, IHS said Monday.

Once the region's perennial economic laggard, the Southeast Asian country is poised to stage a major comeback to be one of the top three economies in the region by 2030, forecast Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist for IHS.

"(The) Philippines economy has undergone a remarkable transition from a pussycat into a tiger economy over the last decade," he said ahead of the holding of the World Economic Forum on East Asia meeting in Manila this week.

"The Philippine economy has the capacity for robust long-term economic growth of around 4.5% to 5% per year over the 2016 to 2030 time horizon," the report said.

The economy will grow from its present level of about $280 billion to $680 billion by 2024, "with a projected GDP of $1.2 trillion by 2030," he added.

He cited the strong growth of remittances from the estimated 10 million Filipinos working overseas as well as the local business process outsourcing industry, which has surged in the past decade.

But Biswas also warned that in order to sustain economic growth, the Philippines will have to improve conditions to attract more investment to the key tourism and manufacturing sectors.

He warned that the country still ranked very poorly on the World Bank's ratings for ease of doing business.

He also cited government figures showing that despite the rapid growth, one in four Filipinos still lives in poverty while unemployment and underemployment remain serious problems.

The Philippines has been one of the fastest-growing economies in Asia in recent years, posting 7.2% growth in 2013.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2014

Popular Sponsored Recommendations

The Benefits of Continuous Thermal Monitoring

Oct. 17, 2023
Read this eBook to learn more about collecting and using data intelligently to improve performance.

7 Crucial Steps to Improve Your OT Security

Oct. 23, 2023
Enhance OT security in manufacturing and production. Uncover the crucial steps to safeguard your operational technology. Protect against evolving threats and bridge the IT-OT ...

Process Mining For Dummies

Nov. 19, 2023
Here it is. Everything you need to know about process mining in a single book, written in the easy-to-understand, hard-to-forget style that ‘For Dummies’ manages so effortlessly...

The Ultimate Ecommerce Excellence Checklist

Oct. 2, 2023
Scaling ecommerce operations is no easy task when your business is moving fast. Assess your current ecommerce maturity level and set optimization priorities with this practical...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of IndustryWeek, create an account today!