Exports should step up its growth rate to meet the goals of the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP).
At the 7th Philippine Farm Tourism Conference in Panglao, Bohol last week, Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., vice chair of the Export Development Council (EDC) and president of the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. said exports need to grow by 40 percent instead of the initial 10 percent target to meet the $143.4-billion export target set for 2024 in PEDP 2023-2028.
“That’s impossible to achieve,” said Ortiz-Luis, who expressed confidence though exports can recover from last year’s slump and grow 11 percent.
Hitting this year’s PEDP target will be very challenging considering merchandise exports declined 7.6 percent to $73.52 billion in 2023, with December 2023 export sales slightly decreasing to $5.78 billion.
EDC said the Philippines faces hurdles in reaching its 2024 growth target due to a significant slump in exports. Weak export demand, particularly from key markets like the United States and China poses a challenge.
The EDC said economists and experts have varying projections for the economic performance this year. While the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) remains optimistic with growth projections of 6.5 to 7.5 percent growth, others like the First Metro Investment Corp. and the University of Asia and the Pacific anticipate slower GDP growth of at least 6 percent this year.
A recent publicly featured study by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) titled “Macroeconomic Outlook of the Philippines in 2023—2024: Prospects and Perils” predicts economic growth in 2024 to be between 5.5 and 6 percent, with inflation dropping to the target range. This study presents conditions shaping the global and regional outlook, projections on growth and consumer prices, and prospects coming into 2024.
