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PHL to grow slower on Japan earthquake, MENA unrest – BSP


The economy will grow less than 7 percent during the first quarter of the year, largely influenced by the disasters currently afflicting Japan and the social unrest in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Friday. "We think the economy will continue to grow this year," BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in an interview with reporters on the sidelines of the annual Citi Microentrepreneur of the Year Awards. In the short-term what is happening in the MENA region and Japan would have a negative impact on global growth, the central bank chief explained. "We may be affected by that and therefore we should not be surprised if the growth rate for this year turns out to be lower than the 7 percent to 8 percent target," he added. “The government is projecting 7 percent to 8 percent although that projection was arrived at prior to the events at the MENA region as well as the earthquake, the tsunami and the nuclear disaster in Japan," Tetangco stressed. The Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) earlier said the country's gross domestic product would expand between 7 percent and 8 percent this year. However, the rebuilding and reconstruction of areas struck by the March 11, 2011 magnitude-9 earthquake that clobbered northeastern Japan would have a positive impact on global economic growth. "In the medium to long term, the expectation is that because of the rebuilding and the reconstruction that will have to be done by Japan that will have a positive impact on economic growth. So the negative impact is expected to be short-term or temporary and in the longer term it will be positive," Tetangco said. — VS, GMA News

Tags: phleconomy
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