FX.co ★ Philippines Manufacturing Output Rebounds in March

In March 2025, manufacturing production in the Philippines experienced a year-on-year increase of 0.4%, marking a recovery from a downwardly revised decline of 0.6% in February. This growth was predominantly driven by a notable acceleration in food product manufacturing, which surged to 19.2% from 13.9% the prior month and accounted for 35.4% of the annual growth. Noteworthy developments were also observed in the production of tobacco products, which jumped to 28.1% from 12.1%, electrical equipment rising to 25.0% from 21.8%, and computer, electronic, and optical products increasing to 3.6% from 1.8%. Additionally, production rebounded for rubber and plastic products, improving to 11.4% from a negative 1.3%, printing and media reproduction, increasing to 8.2% from a contraction of 6.0%, transport equipment climbing to 5.9% from a decrease of 0.9%, and basic pharmaceutical products and preparations up to 3.3% from a fall of 2.2%. In contrast, the production of furniture saw a decrease of 3.1%, a sharp reversal from the 26.6% growth recorded in the previous month. On a seasonally adjusted month-to-month basis, manufacturing output decreased by 3.3%, following a 3.5% decline in the preceding period.