By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Senior Reporter
IN THE PHILIPPINES FAKE work in February it expanded at its fastest pace in eight years amid a surge in production and innovation commands and “entry busconfidence,” S&P Global said on Monday.
However, the US-Iran conflict could cause oil prices to rise, which could be detrimental to the manufacturing sector in the coming months, S&P added.
The S&P Global Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 54.6 in February from 52.9 in January, the strongest improvement since November 2017 when the PMI stood at 54.8.
A PMI reading above 50 means better working conditions than in the previous month, while a reading below 50 indicates a deterioration.
“The Philippines’ manufacturing sector is off to a strong start in 2026, with February marking its strongest performance since late 2017,” said Maryam Baluch, economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, in a report.
“A large influx of new orders supported strong product growth, and in both cases, expansion was announced historically and reached multi-year highs,” he added.
The Philippines recorded the fastest increase in manufacturing activity in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region in February.
Based on data available from S&P as of Monday, the Philippines was ahead of Vietnam (54.3), Indonesia (53.8) and Thailand (53.5). Malaysia saw a decline in PMI to 49.3.
“The good performance of the (manufacturing sector in the Philippines) was accompanied by growing business confidence. Firms were hopeful that demand conditions would continue to improve and drive the increase in production,” said Ms. Baluch.
The full ASEAN PMI data, as well as the Myanmar PMI, are expected to be released on Tuesday.
S&P Global said February marked the third consecutive month in which operating conditions improved in the Philippines.
It noted that Philippine manufacturers posted a rapid increase in production volumes and new orders in February,
“The sharp increase in these two measures was accompanied by an increase in business confidence, which again rose sharply from the low recorded last month,” it added.
Output rose for the second straight month, and at the fastest pace since November 2018.
S&P Global said there was a strong increase in book volumes in the Philippine manufacturing sector in February.
“The seasonally adjusted index reached its highest level in just over eight years. New customer acquisitions and bulk buying activity among customers are said to have boosted new sales,” it said.
S&P attributed the growth in new factory orders to improved domestic and international demand, amid a slight increase in new export orders.
“Imports increased for the second month in a row, although the pace of growth remained strong in February,” it added.
JOB GROWTH IS SURE
Meanwhile, S&P Global saw modest job growth last month, which it said reflected an increase in backlog activity following January’s decline, as a surge in new orders put pressure on Philippine manufacturing capacity.
“Employment growth in the Philippines’ manufacturing sector stabilized in February, with the number of workers increasing for the second month in a row,” he said.
“The pace of job creation has been slow in general and therefore has no moneyfto prevent new accumulation of work backlog,” it added.
Ms. Baluch said that job growth will increase in the coming months as manufacturers will increase their workforce. numbers during the growing backlog.
Philippine manufacturers also recorded an accelerated rate of input purchases in February, which was the strongest pace of expansion since January 2025.
However, S&P Global said there were further delays in February due to increased shopping activity, bad weather, and port congestion.
“Average delivery times for imported goods extended for the third month in a row. The incidence of delays was sharpest overall and most prominent in 14 months,” it added.
Meanwhile, manufacturers reported that operating costs decreased in February, which allowed them to reduce their costs.
S&P Global also noted that manufacturers’ outlook for the next 12 months improved in February.
“Confidence levels have risen significantly from lows recently seen at the start of the year. Panellists who foresee an increase in manufacturing volumes attribute this to the prospect of further improvements in underlying demand,” it said.
FUEL PRICES WERE GOING UP
Meanwhile, S&P said the US-Iran conflict could impact oil prices as well thereby affecting the performance of producers in the Philippines.
“I think it will be something to watch if it continues for a long time,” said S&P Global Market Intelligence Economics Associate Director Jingyi Pan in an interview. Money Talks with Cathy Yang on One News on Monday.
Mrs. Pan said the impact of the war will depend on whether this is a knee-jerk reaction and “how some of the oil suppliers themselves manage the risk.” completely with their current possessions.”
“In the Philippine manufacturing PMI, the price indicators actually showed less than 50, so it’s just a very small drop. But I think that could change very well if we see a spike coming and visible in March,” said Ms. Pan.
“But if it doesn’t turn out to be a long-term situation, I think that will still help to keep inflation more moderate,” he added.
Oil companies on Monday announced that they will increase the price of gasoline by P1.90 per liter, diesel by P1.20 per liter, and kerosene by P1.50 per liter, effective March 3.
The maximum resolution is marked 10th a week in a row of increases for diesel and gasoline, and eight straight weeks for gasoline. Since January, the prices of a liter of gasoline, diesel, and kerosene have increased by P6.70, P9.40, and P7.70 respectively.
Ms. Pan also said that the new values of Mr. Trump was not strongly heard in the February survey among the less than 50 indexes of input and output prices.
“I see this as a sign that the producers themselves are keeping prices depressed in February just to support the growth of exports. [and new orders] the situation as we see it,” he said.
However, Ms Pan noted that confidence remained subdued in February despite the recovery from January.
