Arthur Fuentes

Men work at a construction site in Taytay, Rizal on January 11, 2023. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News

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METRO MANILA SKYLINE

Benise Balaoing

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — Philippine economic growth slowed to 4 percent in the third quarter of 2025, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Friday.This was much slower than the 5.5 percent clip in the 2nd quarter and the 5.4 percent growth in the first quarter.The third quarter figure brought the average growth for the first nine months of the year to 5 percent. This was below the government&#x27;s already revised, lowered target range of 5.5 to 6.5 percent this year. National Statistician and PSA Undersecretary Claire Dennis Mapa said that excluding the sharp declines during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Q3 growth rate was the lowest since 2011.&quot;Of course noong COVID-19 pandemic mayroon tayong Q1 2021 na minus 3.8 percent. Excluding that, that particular period, it would be like lowest since Q3 2011 kung saan nagkaroon tayo ng growth rate na 3 percent sa GDP,&quot; Mapa said.The Department of Economy Planning and Development said that it was no longer likely that the Philippines would meet even the lower end of its target growth range, after the slower-than-expected third quarter. &quot;It&#x27;s very challenging to meet already even the lower range of the 5.5 [percent] because that would mean that the fourth quarter would have to grow at 6.9 percent or something around that,&quot; said DEPDev Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.He also noted that even as the country continues to deal with the effects of a recent typhoon, another super typhoon is expected to hit the country in the coming days.<div> </div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1762479353574gdp.png" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/></div><div> </div>Balisacan said weather disturbances during the July to September period again were a factor in dampening growth.DEPDev also acknowledged that corruption played a part in weighing down the economy. Balisacan said the government will work harder to root out corruption and bring back investor confidence in the economy.&quot;It is clear that transparency and accountability remain foundational to foster a culture of trust in our institutions,&quot; Balisacan said.&quot;We are committed to rebuilding investor confidence by ensuring that every penny of taxpayer money is spent wisely and efficiently,&quot; he continued.He encouraged the public to report delays or irregularities through platforms like the Sumbong sa Pangulo, even as the government harnesses digital tools like the PhilGEP [Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System] Open Data Portal, and the Digital Imaging for Monitoring and Evaluation or DIME project.<div>DISQUALIFY RELATIVES UP TO 4TH DEGREE</div>Balisacan also outlined legislative measures like amendments to the Bank Deposit Secrecy Law, amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Act, and a Master Plan for Infrastructure and National Development.He also said that there is a proposal for relatives of public officials up to the fourth degree to be disqualified from participating in government contracts to prevent conflicts of interest and promote integrity.This was after several contractors were revealed to be relatives of or had connections to public officials, who themselves had pushed for the infrastructure projects that the contractors were working on.Stricter rules on infrastructure projects, following the flood control mess, meanwhile resulted in a slump in public construction spending, which also weighed on the economy.    <div>CONTRACTION IN CONSTRUCTION</div>The PSA noted that construction also contracted by 0.5 percent, in contrast to the 9 percent growth recorded in the same quarter of 2024. Public construction spending contracted significantly in the third quarter, compared to the same period in 2024.Balisacan said that private construction &quot;remained respectable&quot; but public construction plunged.Mapa said government spending on construction was negative 26.2 percent in the third quarter, which was the lowest since the negative 22.5 percent plunge in spending in 2011. Back then, the administration of President Noynoy Aquino had put the brakes on infrastructure spending to root out corruption in these projects.Balisacan said the government now wants to improve the quality of spending instead of simply increasing the amount of spending.&quot;Even if we have to reduce the overall level of spending, if it&#x27;s going to the right areas, right sectors, right priorities that we are working on, the impact of that on the overall economy and the inclusivity of the growth will be even greater. I would prefer that than just simply raising spending,&quot; the country&#x27;s chief development economist said.Balisacan added that he still hopes that full-year growth will be around 5 percent.&quot;While we may not be able to fully recover the economic losses within the year, we believe these are temporary setbacks. With sustained interventions and improved resilience, we expect the economy to rebound in 2026,&quot; Balisacan said.The DEPDev chief said they remain optimistic as the Philippines still has strong macroeconomic fundamentals, low inflation, manageable fiscal deficit and public debt, stable currency and external balance, and a stable banking sector.

The Philippine economy grew at a slower 4 percent in the third quarter of 2025, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Friday.

The Philippine economy grew at a slower 4 percent in the third quarter of 2025, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Friday.

PH GDP growth slows to 4 pct in Q3 as govt puts brakes on infra spending amid corruption mess

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PH GDP growth slows to 4 pct in Q3 as govt puts brakes on infra spending amid corruption mess

Arthur Fuentes,

Benise Balaoing,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 07, 2025 09:20 AM PHT

|

Updated Nov 07, 2025 03:33 PM PHT

Read More:

philippine economy

economic growth

GDP

Q3

gross domestic product

Arsenio balisacan

DEPDev

PSA

Dennis Mapa

corruption

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