The World Bank has sharply downgraded its economic growth projections for the Philippines, forecasting that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) will expand by just 5.3 percent in 2025—significantly lower than its previous estimate of 6 percent made in October 2024. This revised outlook, published in the World Bank’s April 2025 East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, marks the slowest pace of growth for the Philippines since the post-pandemic recovery began in 2021, and falls well short of the government’s 6-8 percent annual growth target for the coming years.
The downgrade comes as the Philippines and the wider East Asia and Pacific region grapple with mounting global headwinds. The World Bank cited a looming global trade war, ongoing policy uncertainty, and a slowdown in major trading partners as key factors weighing on the country’s economic prospects. These external pressures have been compounded by domestic challenges, including underinvestment in infrastructure, regulatory hurdles to foreign investment, and persistent vulnerabilities in the agriculture sector.
Despite the disappointing revision, the World Bank notes that the Philippines remains among the region’s faster-growing economies, trailing only Mongolia and Vietnam in projected growth for 2025. However, policymakers are being urged to accelerate economic reforms, invest in new technologies, and deepen international cooperation to help the country navigate global uncertainty and sustain job creation. As National Socioeconomic Planner Arsenio Balisacan acknowledged, the government’s more ambitious growth targets may now be “unrealistic” given the shifting global landscape.
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(Source: Manila Bulletin | World Bank Group | Inquirer.net)
