Gov't aiming to exceed GDP growth forecast — NEDA chief

The economic growth target for 2012 stands at 5 percent to 6 percent, but the government is aiming to reach the high end of the target, if not exceed it altogether, the country's socioeconomic planning chief said Monday.  

 

“We are aiming for that,” National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Director General Arsenio Balisacan told reporters during the launch of the 23rd National Statistics Month. Balisacan said that the services sector, which includes the country's thriving IT-BPO industry, would be the likely drivers of economic growth.  Though he did not give any estimates for the GDP's growth in the third quarter, Balisacan said he hopes that it would be better than the previous quarters'. The GDP grew 6.4 percent in the first quarter, and 5.9 percent in the second quarter, bringing the first semester GDP growth average to 6.1 percent.