Philippine economy grows 7.8% in Q1

The Philippine economy posted a 7.8 percent growth in the first quarter of this year, as against 6.5 percent in the same period last year, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) announced Thursday. The NSCB attributed the record growth in nearly three years to upbeat business and consumer sentiment, sustained government capital expenditure and strong performance of manufacturing. On the demand side, increased consumer and government spending shored up by increased investment in construction and durable equipment contributed to the highest quarterly GDP growth since the second quarter of 2010. Thanks to continued inflow of remittances from overseas workers, the growth of net primary income from the rest of the world accelerated to 3.2 percent, lifting the gross national income (GNI) growth to 7.1 percent from 5.7 percent in 2012, the NSCB said. The services sector accelerated to 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013 from 1.1 percent in the previous quarter, as all its subsectors recorded positive growth. Positive growth in seasonally adjusted terms across major sectors has been resulting since the fourth quarter of 2010, it added.