Philippines says 2009 GDP goal may be exceeded

Published: 26 Aug 2009 18:45:19 PST

MANILA, Aug 27 - The Philippines should surpass an annual growth target of 0.8 to 1.8 percent this year as the government expects election-related spending to start in the second half, fuelling higher consumption, a senior official said on Thursday.

"It's easy to breach," Dennis Arroyo, head of policy planning at the socio-economic planning agency, told reporters when asked if the growth goal was achievable.

"To breach the 1.8 percent, you have to grow 2.6 percent in the next semester, which seems easy," he said.

Arroyo also said annual growth in the third quarter could be better than in the second quarter, with inflation seen decelerating further in August.

The government earlier said the economy grew an annual 1.5 percent in the second quarter and an annual 1.0 percent in the first half of the year.