The Philippine economy expanded by 2.1 percent in the third quarter of 2026, slowing from the revised 2.4-percent growth recorded in the previous quarter, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The latest result also fell short of the 2.8-percent median growth forecast of 14 economists surveyed by the Inquirer ahead of the release. It was considerably lower than the 4-percent expansion recorded in the same quarter last year.
The services sector remained the main contributor to economic growth, posting a 3.7-percent expansion. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing contracted by 4.8 percent, while the industry sector recorded a marginal decline of 0.003 percent.
On the expenditure side, household consumption grew by 2.4 percent, while government spending increased by 6.8 percent. Exports also rose by 8.6 percent, but gross capital formation, which includes investments, declined by 0.2 percent.
The third-quarter result adds pressure on the government to strengthen economic activity and improve growth performance, particularly as the administration seeks to meet its revised full-year growth target of 3.5 to 4.5 percent.