The GDP growth rate of the Philippines dropped by 16.5 per cent in the second quarter of 2020, the lowest recorded quarterly growth since 1981, bringing the country to a technical recession.
In a virtual briefing held on Thursday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said the economy contracted by 16.5 per cent during the April to June period, following the downward-revised -0.7 per cent in the first quarter of the year, and 5.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2019.
PSA head Dennis Mapa said the main contributors to the decline were: manufacturing, 21.3 per cent; construction, 33.5 per cent; and transportation and storage, 59.2 per cent, reports Xinhua.
Among the major economic sectors, the PSA said only agriculture, forestry, and fishing increased with 1.6 per cent growth.
The PSA added that industry and services both decreased during the period by 22.9 per cent and 15.8 per cent, respectively.
On the other hand, the government's final consumption expenditure posted positive growth of 22.1 per cent.
The PSA said Net Primary Income from the rest of the world and gross national income both declined by 22.0 per cent and 17.0 per cent, respectively.
Mapa said that the economic slowdown was "partly because of the April - May coronavirus lockdown," adding that the second-quarter GDP rate is the "largest decline" so far since 1981.
In mid-March, the Philippines imposed a lockdown in Metro Manila and other parts of the country to curb the spread of the virus.