Story 1 - Manila sees 2006 growth goals intact despite typhoon
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said on Thursday that economic growth projections for 2006 would be met despite damage to crops, infrastructure and property from Typhoon Durian last week.
The typhoon, which ravaged wide areas in the country, killed 570 people and 746 remained missing when torrential rains loosened tonnes of mud and boulders on the slopes of Mayon volcano and buried villages.
"We expect our growth projections to be met," Arroyo told a business conference.
Durian, the fourth typhoon to hit the Philippines in three months affected more than 1.6 million people, nearly 250,000 houses were damaged while agriculture and infrastructure damage was estimated at 1.27 billion pesos ($25.6 million), the National Disaster Coordinating Council said.
The Southeast Asian country aims for gross domestic product growth 5.5-6.1 percent this year from last year compared with actual growth of 5.0 percent in 2005 and 6.2 percent in 2004.
Last month, the government said that the economy's performance fell far short of expectations in the third quarter, growing from the second quarter at its weakest pace in five years as typhoon damage to crops and a slowdown in manufacturing took a toll.
GDP rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in the third quarter, below the median forecast in a Reuters poll of 1.1 percent and slowing from 1.7 percent in the second quarter.
It was the weakest quarter-on-quarter showing since growth of 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2001.
The Philippine economy, driven by exports of electronics and farm goods and overseas remittances fuelling domestic demand, needs to grow at least 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter from a year ago to hit the low end of the government's 2006 goal.
The head of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines (SEIPI) association told Reuters earlier on Thursday it expected exports to grow by 10 percent next year, in line with this year's growth forecast.
The country supplies about 10 percent of the world's semiconductor manufacturing services, including mobile phone chips and microprocessors, and electronic products account for nearly two thirds of national exports.
Typhoon Xangsane battered large areas devoted to rice and coconuts on the main island of Luzon in late September, braking annual farm sector growth to 4.87 percent in the third quarter from 6.41 percent growth in the second quarter. (The article came out on the wires on December 7)
The typhoon, which ravaged wide areas in the country, killed 570 people and 746 remained missing when torrential rains loosened tonnes of mud and boulders on the slopes of Mayon volcano and buried villages.
"We expect our growth projections to be met," Arroyo told a business conference.
Durian, the fourth typhoon to hit the Philippines in three months affected more than 1.6 million people, nearly 250,000 houses were damaged while agriculture and infrastructure damage was estimated at 1.27 billion pesos ($25.6 million), the National Disaster Coordinating Council said.
The Southeast Asian country aims for gross domestic product growth 5.5-6.1 percent this year from last year compared with actual growth of 5.0 percent in 2005 and 6.2 percent in 2004.
Last month, the government said that the economy's performance fell far short of expectations in the third quarter, growing from the second quarter at its weakest pace in five years as typhoon damage to crops and a slowdown in manufacturing took a toll.
GDP rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in the third quarter, below the median forecast in a Reuters poll of 1.1 percent and slowing from 1.7 percent in the second quarter.
It was the weakest quarter-on-quarter showing since growth of 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2001.
The Philippine economy, driven by exports of electronics and farm goods and overseas remittances fuelling domestic demand, needs to grow at least 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter from a year ago to hit the low end of the government's 2006 goal.
The head of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines (SEIPI) association told Reuters earlier on Thursday it expected exports to grow by 10 percent next year, in line with this year's growth forecast.
The country supplies about 10 percent of the world's semiconductor manufacturing services, including mobile phone chips and microprocessors, and electronic products account for nearly two thirds of national exports.
Typhoon Xangsane battered large areas devoted to rice and coconuts on the main island of Luzon in late September, braking annual farm sector growth to 4.87 percent in the third quarter from 6.41 percent growth in the second quarter. (The article came out on the wires on December 7)
posted by Karen at 11:19 PM
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