‘Philippine Economic Growth on Track to Lead Southeast Asia’

Rodrigo Duterte

There is some positive news for the Philippines:

Philippine Economic Growth on Track to Lead Southeast Asia

December 30, 2016

The Philippine economy likely grew faster than any other in Southeast Asia this year, aided by stronger diplomacy with China and Japan and increased spending on infrastructure and the call-center industry.

The total value of goods and services in the Philippines climbed 6.7 percent in 2016, according to government estimates. Third-quarter values of 7.1 percent surpassed comparable figures for all of Asia. The International Monetary Fund estimates the Philippine economy to be worth $311 billion.

Philippine presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella cited achievements in foreign partnerships as a reason for the rise in economic growth. Since taking office in June, President Rodrigo Duterte has formed new ties with China and bolstered relations with already keen investor Japan.

China’s impact expected to grow

“In terms of the impact on China, (the Philippines) is still one of the least dependent economies on China across the region,” said Rahul Bajoria, regional economist with Barclays in Singapore.

“But over time, given the way the dynamics are playing out, the impact of China is expected to grow over the next three to five years,” he said. “The real gains could come in the form of FDI (foreign direct investment), potentially both in manufacturing and in the mining sectors.”

In October, Duterte visited heads of state in China and Japan as part of his policy to reduce dependence on the United States, the Philippines’ former colonizer.

China pledged aid worth $24 billion, and economists expect Japan to invest in factories as well as fund development projects. Japan was the top source of direct investment in the Philippines a year ago, accounting for about 29 percent of the total.

In 2017 Duterte will chair ASEAN, a bloc of 10 Southeast Asian countries. His spokesman told local media that role would help develop more foreign partnerships.

Building on Aquino

Duterte’s economic growth formula also extends partly from the past president, Benigno Aquino, Philippine socioeconomic planning secretary Ernesto Pernia said.

Aquino raised infrastructure to 5 percent of the gross domestic product this year for expressways, Metro Manila mass transit and railways in outer provinces. He also sought investors through what his administration called “China+1.” That program gave foreign firms in China incentives to expand in the Philippines instead.

Duterte aims to focus infrastructure development on rural Philippines, home to many of the country’s estimated 25 million impoverished people, Pernia told a news conference.

“We are carrying on with the macro-economic policies of the previous administration but ramping up infrastructure spending, promoting regional and rural development and investing heavily in human capital development, which includes health and education and nutrition,” Pernia told the news conference in a video replay.

To sustain the infrastructure push, the Duterte government in September began spending $6.46 billion on schools, hospitals, flood control and airports.

The Philippines economy normally relies on consumption, remittances from Filipino workers stationed overseas and call centers for multinationals with headquarters offshore.

English fluency and low wages drive call centers to the Philippines, and the Business Process Association of the Philippines estimates those centers earned revenue of $25 billion in 2016. Remittances totaled $14.6 billion in the first half of the year.

The Manila-based Asian Development bank forecasts 6.4 percent growth this year for the Philippines and 6.2 percent in 2017. The country has outpaced the rest of Southeast Asia for the past five years, Bajoria said. http://www.voanews.com/a/philippine-economic-growth-on-track-to-lead-southwest-asia/3656732.html

It is nice to see economic growth in the Philippines.

Part of the recent growth has been because of moves of the Philippines towards China.

As regular readers of this news page are aware, I have written about that possibility for years. Notice, for example, something I posted here over 5 years ago:

Fidel V. Ramos, a former president of the Philippines, is calling for Pax Asia-Pacifica to replace Pax-Americana:

One of the main sources of tension in Asia nowadays are the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, where the Philippines, Vietnam, China, and others have conflicting claims…

More broadly, the urgent task for Asian statesmen over the next 5-10 years will be to replace the region’s Pax Americana, which has guaranteed regional stability for decades, with a more comprehensive Pax Asia-Pacifica that is built on inclusiveness and burden-sharing. But such an Asia-Pacific peace will be durable only if it is based on a balance of mutual benefits rather than on the balance of power.

Clearly, this concept implies burden-sharing by all Asia-Pacific countries to ensure the region’s harmony and security. http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/ramos9/English

So, despite the conflicts currently between China, Vietnam, and the Philippines there is still interest in developing a Pax Asia-Pacifica to replace Pax-Americana. This is consistent with biblical prophecy as it indicates that a confederation of Asian powers will come together at the end and many will gather at Armageddon.

The fact that Fidel Ramos hopes for/expects it in the next 5 -10 years is also of interest and is consistent with my own prophetic understanding of these matters.

While one would think that the Philippines would be more wary of the USA than China, at least one major Philippino leader believes that the future is one in which the USA is not the guarantor of peace. A new world order is developing, and this is an order in which the USA is no longer on top. (Thiel B. Philippine’s Ramos Calling for Pax Asia-Pacifica to Replace Pax-Americana. COGwriter, July 14, 2011)

That is now happening!

As far as military cooperation goes, that too is prophesied.

12 Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared. 13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15 Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.” 16 And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon (Revelation 16:12-16).

The above shows military cooperation between Asian powers–it is Asia that is in the far east.

While we are at least seven years away from the fulfillment of Revelation 16, world events are aligning for the fulfillment of this.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Asia in Prophecy What is Ahead for Asia? Who are the “Kings of the East”? What will happen to nearly all the Chinese, Russians, Indians, and others of Asia? China in prophecy, where? Who has the 200,000,000 man army related to Armageddon? A YouTube video of interest may be Is China THE Threat to the United States of America?
Are Chinese threats against Australia for real? The Chinese paper ‘Global Times’ has carried threats in 2011 and 2016 suggesting the China would militarily intervene against Australia. It has declared that Australia is a ‘paper cat,’ that China will get revenge against it, and that Australia would be no more. Is this possible? Are there biblical and other reasons to think that this threat is real? Dr. Thiel answers these questions and brings up the fact that he has been warning about this threat since last decade. This is a video.
Islands and Bible Prophecy What’s ahead for islands? What does the Bible prophesy about them?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
China, Its Biblical Past and Future, Part 1: Genesis and Chinese Characters Where did the Chinese people come from? This article provides information showing that the Chinese peoples must have known about various accounts in the Book of Genesis up until their dispersion after the Tower of Babel. Here is a link to a version of this article in Spanish: ¿Prueban los caracteres chinos la exactitud de la Biblia?
China, Its Biblical Past and Future, Part 2: The Sabbath and Some of God’s Witness in China When did Christianity first come to China? And is there early evidence that they observed the seventh day sabbath?
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2023 or 20xx? There is also a video titled The 6000 Year Plan: Is the end of humanity’s reign almost up? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2017, 2018, or 2019? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2016 o 2017? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter video is: Will the Great Tribulation Start in 2017?