By Joann Santiago
MANILA, Aug. 26 (PNA) — An analyst of ING Bank Manila said domestic growth likely improved in the second quarter of the year buoyed by improvement in government spending and robust domestic demand.
The government is scheduled to report the country’s 2015 second quarter output Thursday and ING Bank Manila senior economist Joey Cuyegkeng, in a research note, said consensus growth forecast is 5.6-5.7 percent.
This forecast range is higher than the 5.2 percent output, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP), in the first quarter of the year.
Share of agriculture, exports and manufacturing are not expected to help booth domestic growth, he said,
“Offsetting this is acceleration in government’s overall spending and infrastructure spending. Private consumption and overall domestic demand are expected to remain strong and also offset the weakness in other sectors,” he said.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Wednesday reported that infrastructure spending grew by 37.3 percent year-on-year to Php 81.8 billion from April to June 2015.
This was due to implementation of more development programs under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which surpassed its program for the quarter by Php 8.83 billion.
Total spending in the second quarter this year reached Php 567.9 billion, up 12.4 percent year-on-year. (PNA)