Philippine export prospects brighten
Footwear was among the commodities that helped factory output in The Philippines climb 6.5% in June 2003 compared with the year before, the country’s National Statistics Office (NSO) has advised. Growth in export markets was cited as the main reason.
Output of leather goods declined, however, as the typhoons that broke out during the month slowed overall business activity.
Release of the figures coincided with yesterday’s announcement by Finance Secretary Jose Isidro N. Camacho that last month’s failed military coup had slowed economic growth by 4.5% in the second quarter and severely dented the country’s currency. However, he also noted that gross domestic product (GDP) rose by a stronger than expected 4.5 percent in the three months to March, adding that he expected the positive trend to reassert itself in the second half.
