President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed confidence that the Philippine economy would recover despite slowing growth and rising inflation triggered by the continuing conflict in the Middle East.
Speaking to members of the Japanese media in Malacañang, Marcos acknowledged the country’s recent economic challenges, including inflation climbing to 7.2 percent in April from 4.1 percent in March and first-quarter economic growth slowing to 2.8 percent from 3 percent in the previous quarter.
Despite these setbacks, the Chief Executive said the government remains focused on keeping economic activity stable and sustaining investor confidence.
“We are still continuing to see marked interest in investment in the Philippines,” Marcos said.
He attributed the continued investor interest to government policies and incentives designed to attract businesses and support economic activity even amid global uncertainty.
“And perhaps this is why. This is because of the policies that we adopted, the incentives that we put out for investors,” he added.
Marcos said one of the administration’s key concerns is the threat of stagflation, a situation where economic growth slows while inflation continues to rise.
To address inflationary pressures, the government has implemented several interventions, including fuel subsidies and financial assistance for the transport sector, as well as measures aimed at lowering food costs such as the price cap on imported rice and the rollout of P20-per-kilo rice programs.
The President also pointed to increased public spending and additional incentives for investors as part of broader efforts to stimulate the economy and support businesses, particularly micro, small, and medium enterprises.
According to Marcos, the administration continues to develop reforms intended to improve the ease of doing business and encourage long-term investments in the country.
“We want to keep the system, the economic system, continuing to function. We have done all these measures to keep inflation down,” he said.