The Philippines saw a modest rise in construction activity in March 2025, as approved building permits reached 14,973, up 3.4 percent from 14,477 in the same month last year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Despite widespread access to basic education, nearly 25 million Filipinos—or about one in every five people aged 10 to 64 years old—are still “not functionally literate,” according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
According data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, the number of working children aged 5 to 17 dropped to 863,000 in 2024 from 1.09 million in 2023 and 1.48 million in 2022. This marks a significant milestone in the country’s fight against child labor, bringing figures even lower than the pandemic-era low of 872,300 in 2020.
Rice prices continued to ease in early May, indicating a potential further slowdown in inflation after headline inflation decelerated in April to its slowest pace since November 2019.
Foreign investment approvals plunged 82 percent in the first quarter to a total P27.99 billion compared to P155.26 billion in the same period last year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has lifted the temporary ban on the importation of pork and other swine products from Poland, citing the country’s policy on African swine fever (ASF) regionalization.
Cash remittances from overseas Filipinos rose to US$2.9 billion in November 2025, highlighting the continued importance of migrant workers’ income in supporting the Philippine economy.
The Philippines must aim higher—much higher—if it wants growth that is truly inclusive, according to the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII).
The P9 billion-odd market for takaful, or Islamic insurance, remains small in the Philippines but is slowly gaining ground as insurers step up efforts to widen awareness and use, particularly in Mindanao.