Philippines Gov’t Spending Surges 42%

The fiscal space expanded by the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law enabled the Philippines government to boost investment and growth in the first half, the finance department said over the weekend, PNA reported. The agency said in an economic bulletin the national government’s capital outlays in the first semester expanded 42.4% in nominal terms, boosting GDP growth by almost a percentage point. Government’s current expenditures also rose 26.6%, contributing an incremental 1.16 percentage points to growth. The second-quarter expansion of 6%, however, was slower than the revised 6.6% growth in the first quarter.  This brought the first-half GDP growth to 6.3%, below the government’s target range of 7-8%. “Strong macroeconomic fundamentals backed by tax reforms and the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program will continue to boost economic growth as the competitiveness of the economy rises and more jobs are created,” the DoF said. Data also showed that the national government revenues increased 19.9% in the first semester, as the first phase of the Train law took effect in January.