The growth of the gross revenues of key industries slowed to 8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Data showed that the growth of the Total Gross Revenue Index (TGRI) in the October-to-December 2014 period was slower than the 8.3 percent posted in the same period in 2013.
The PSA attributed this slowdown to lower total revenues from the trade and transportation and real-estate industries, which slowed to 7.7 percent and 7.5 percent in October to December 2014.
The growth of the TGRI was kept positive due to higher growth in the manufacturing, private services and finance sectors.
Manufacturing and private services sectors managed to accelerate with a growth of 8.8 percent from 8 percent and 9.2 percent from 3.3 percent, respectively.
Finance, on the other hand, recorded a double-digit growth of 10.2 percent, albeit a slight deceleration from a growth of 10.5 percent in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, PSA data showed that the Total Compensation Index also strengthened with a growth of 8 percent during the fourth quarter of 2014, from 6.1 percent in the same period in 2013.
This was led by private services’ double-digit growth of 10.2 percent from 7.1 percent in the same period in 2013. This was largely due to the increase in transportation and communication with 7.7 percent from 2.9 percent, and electricity and water with 3.5 percent from 1.7 percent.
The PSA said industries that pulled down the total compensation index were led by mining and quarrying, which suffered a 9.9-percent slump from a double-digit growth of 10.8 percent from the same period last year.
Further, data showed that real estate slowed to 8.5 percent from the 13.8 percent growth posted in 2013, and finance with 4.9 percent from 11.8 percent.
Total Compensation per Employee Index registered a slightly higher growth of 3.3 percent from 3.1 percent in 2013.
Leading the sectors are electricity and water with 5.3 percent, and transportation and communication with 5.1 percent. These are followed by manufacturing with 3.9 percent; private services with 2.3 percent; and trade with 1.5 percent.
The rest of the industries, however, suffered significant setbacks during the period. These were real estate, finance, and mining and quarrying.