Phl inches closer to upper-middle income status

The Marcos administration is making headway in stabilizing the country’s economy, with key indicators showing strong growth, easing inflation, and reduced poverty, according to Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.

In a briefing held Thursday in Mandaluyong City, Balisacan highlighted the Philippines’ economic strides, noting that the country remains one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies from 2023 up to the first quarter of 2025.

“We’ve made meaningful progress,” Balisacan said. “Unemployment is now below pre-pandemic levels, underemployment is down, and 2.4 million Filipinos have been lifted out of poverty.”

He cited a drop in poverty incidence to 15.5 percent in 2023, alongside a dramatic slowdown in inflation—from 8.7 percent in January 2023 to just 1.4 percent in June 2025.

What’s more, the Philippines is on the brink of achieving upper-middle income status, needing just 26 dollars more in gross national income (GNI) per capita to make the leap, according to World Bank estimates.

But Balisacan was quick to temper the optimism, saying that strong numbers must translate to real improvements in Filipino lives.

“As the President rightly said, economic growth means little if it doesn’t result in better living conditions for our people,” he said. “We still have a lot to do in the second half of this administration.”

From 2025 to 2028, the Marcos administration aims to sustain rapid, inclusive growth by promoting economic diversification, boosting competitiveness and innovation, and cutting poverty to single-digit levels by the end of the term.

“Transformation for all requires transformation by all,” Balisacan said, emphasizing the need for better coordination between national and local governments, the executive and legislative branches, and the private sector and development partners.