Economy

The Philippines lifted 6.5 million Filipinos out of poverty in just two years, pushing the national poverty rate down to a record-low 9.7 percent in 2025 and allowing the government to hit its single-digit target three years ahead of schedule.

Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian is looking to raise taxes on vaping products and develop a Philippine version of a wealth tax to offset revenue losses from a proposed repeal of the travel tax while supporting economic growth.

Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian is backing the Philippines’ bid to secure the proposed Pax Silica high-technology manufacturing hub, calling the project a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to draw foreign direct investments, create jobs, and build the country’s next major growth engine after business process outsourcing.

The Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) expects business conditions to remain subdued through the fourth quarter of 2026, with limited prospects for a consumer-led rebound before yearend, even as it sees a stronger recovery taking shape in 2027.

Philippine exporters left an estimated £92 million, or about P7.7 billion, worth of eligible shipments to the United Kingdom without claiming preferential tariff treatment in 2025, highlighting a potentially costly gap in the use of the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).