Editorial research
Insights
Data-led analysis of Southeast Asia, with findings, country comparisons and the sources behind them.
The Philippines borrows less than Malaysia — and still spends a larger share of revenue on interest.
Read the debt and interest explainer →
Currencies & FX
The Philippines floats: the peso at 61.45 per dollar, REER 97.0 (−3.4%). Softer in real terms than Malaysia’s 105.0, milder than Indonesia’s 87.8 (−8.6%). Singapore’s crawl-like S$NEER is the hub exception — not a peer float story.
Read the analysis →
Singapore takes two-thirds of ASEAN-6 venture valueOn the Enterprise Singapore 2024 Landscape (PitchBook), Singapore took 67% of ASEAN-6 deal value and 58.8% of deals: US$4,800 million and 464 deals out of US$7,200 million and 789. The Philippines is the dual-story case: 18% of value from 5.0% of deals (US$1,296 million, 39 deals). A separate FY2025 series (do not average with Landscape) shows ASEAN-6 down from US$16,500 million / 1,754 deals in 2022 to US$6,300 million / 717 in 2025; PH value share 2.0%. BRN/KHM/LAO/MMR/TLS have no country VC cells.
Read the analysis →
A calendar, not a risk scoreAs of 1 Oct 2026 the recent wave is recorded (SG 3 May 2025, PH midterms 12 May 2025, MMR junta phases ending 25 Jan 2026, TH snap 8 Feb 2026, LA 22 Feb 2026, VN 15 Mar 2026). Still ahead: TL presidential ~Mar 2027, MY GE16 by Feb 2028, PH presidential 8 May 2028, KH 30 Jul 2028. Brunei N/A; Myanmar next free election blank.
Read the analysis →
Price indexes moved; price-to-income is emptyPIR empty for all 11. BIS real: PH 2024-Q4 +7.0% YoY (vs emerging-Asia −5.7%), cooled to +1.6% by 2026-Q1. By 2026-Q2 ID soft pole (real index 92.9, −2.2%); MY −1.0%, TH −0.3%, SG +1.0%. VN/KH/LA/MMR/BN/TL outside BIS panel.
Read the analysis →
A deep Philippine schedule, thin utilisationSchedule depth is not utilisation and is not applied MFN. APEC Day-1: PH opened 81.9–83.0% of lines (highest AMS except SG 100%); RCEP EIF for PH 2 Jun 2023; IDE-JETRO PH import utilisation on China 2% (Jan–Oct 2024). KH/LA ~29.9%, MMR 30.0%; TH 66.3%, VN 65.3%, ID 65.0–65.1%, MY 69.9%, BN 76.5%. TLS not a party.
Read the analysis →
Stunting and overweight are not one scoreNo blended score. TL stunting 46.7% (2020); among 2023 readings LA highest 32.8%. PH 26.7% (2021) above ID 22.0%, MY 21.2%, VN 18.2%, TH 12.4%. PH anaemia SEA-11 low 12.0% (2023). TH double-burden: child overweight 10.9%, adult 45.7% (2022). PH PoU 3.0% is not FIES 32.9% and is not stunting.
Read the analysis →
Three indexes, and Myanmar is the poleKeep off governance and climate pages. MMR pole: WGI PS −2.09, FSI 100.0 (rank 11), GPI 3.045 (rank 153), major_active. Among MY/TH/VN/ID peers, PH softest: WGI −0.77, FSI 75.1, GPI 2.148, subnational. SG ceiling (GPI 1.357 / FSI 25.4 / WGI 1.23); BN no GPI 2025.
Read the analysis →
Cleaner air is not lower carbonPM2.5 is not a CO2 rank. MMR 2023 mean exposure highest 35.1 μg/m³; BN lowest 7.6 but highest CO2e/capita 20.2 t. ID largest tonnes (812 Mt) at 2.87 t/person. PH mid-pack PM2.5 22.2 among five peers; lowest of five on CO2e/capita 1.50 (vs ID 2.87, TH 3.96, VN 4.27, MY 8.32).
Read the analysis →
Basic water is not safely managed waterBasic is not safely managed. SG 100% ceiling. PH strong on basic drinking water 95.9% and handwashing 97.3%, but safely managed drinking water 48.5% (VN 58.6%, MY 94.7%). PH basic sanitation 87.2% lowest of five peers; safely managed sanitation 62.2% above VN/TH, below MY; ID empty.
Read the analysis →
High-tech exports, low R&DHigh-tech share is not R&D intensity. PH highest SEA-11 high-tech export share 61.0% (2024) vs MY 58.6%, VN 44.3% (2023), TH 28.3%, ID 8.7%; GERD 0.28% of GDP (2020), level with ID, behind MY 1.01% and TH 0.94%. Researchers 320/million (2020), resident patents 490 (2021) lowest of five peers; GII 2025 50th / 33.6. SG ceiling (GERD 1.81%, GII 5th).
Read the analysis →
Productivity without an informality fillSeparate panels. PH 2025 labour productivity US$24,593 per person employed (2021 PPP) — below MY 70,821 and TH 39,617, near ID 30,292 and VN 27,957. Informal employment empty for PH/MY/SG; where reported LA 90.5%, KH 89.4%, ID 81.0%. SG/BN outliers not peer bars.
Read the analysis →
Largest diaspora, tiny immigrant stockStock is not remittances. Mid-2024 PH largest emigrant stock 6,988,383 (6.03% of pop), immigrant stock 87,212 (0.08%). Opposite of SG immigrant hub (48.72%). MY/TH large host stocks; ID diaspora 3.75m, VN 3.69m.
Read the analysis →
BBB+ Stable and BBB NegativeLetters are not a DSF category. PH split: S&P BBB+ Stable, Moody’s Baa2 Stable, Fitch BBB Negative; public debt 60.2% GDP (2026). LA distress pole: LIC-DSF In debt distress, CCC+/Caa2, debt 74.6% GDP, external 115.4% GNI. SG AAA with high gross debt is a hub footnote, not a distress peer.
Read the analysis →
Applied tariffs are not the RCEP rateApplied/MFN is not RCEP margins. PH 2022 applied simple mean 3.94% vs MFN 6.15%. Among five peers below TH/ID/MY, just above VN; KH highest applied 12.31%. PH last ASEAN EIF 2 Jun 2023; SG near-zero hub; TLS not party.
Read the analysis →
A CPI of 33 is not a rule-of-law scoreThree panels. CPI 2024 PH 33 (rank 114), tied LA, behind TH 34 / ID 37 / VN 40 / MY 50. WJP overall 0.46 (99 of 142) weakest of those peers; Factor 2 Absence of Corruption 0.43 is not a CPI reprint. SG ceiling CPI 84 / WJP 0.78.
Read the analysis →
Remittances up, FDI and factories lagFive columns only. Standout remittances 8.53% GDP (2025). Lags: FDI inflows US$8.93bn (2024) lowest of five; manufacturing VA 15.3% GDP lowest. IMF 2026 growth 4.1%, inflation 4.3%. INFORM High 5.4. SG FDI footnote (~63% ASEAN), never a sixth column.
Read the analysis →
AI rankingsSingapore leads every readiness series that covers it — Oxford Insights 2025 at 76.42 (7 of 195), IMF AIPI 2023 at 0.801, Tortoise Global AI Index 2024 at 3rd of 83. The Philippines sits mid-pack on Oxford at 60.51 (43), with Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia in the same band. Those are separate ladders. A readiness score is not compute, not a statute, and not talent.
Read the analysis →
Tourism recoveryThailand and Malaysia still lead ASEAN arrivals — 28.1 and 20.1 million. The Philippines sits with Cambodia at 5.45 million, well behind the next tier.
Read the analysis →
Poverty & inequalityThe Philippines records 15.5% national poverty — but comparing living standards across borders requires consistent thresholds and welfare measures.
Read the analysis →
Health outcomesAmong its peers, the Philippines has the shortest life expectancy — 69.9 years — and the highest under-five mortality. Measles and DPT coverage are also the weakest of the five.
Read the analysis →
Governance & riskSingapore tops World Governance Indicators and sits at Very Low risk. Myanmar is the opposite. The Philippines is the only High-INFORM peer — and the weakest on rule of law and control of corruption among Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Read the analysis →
Foreign direct investmentThe US was ASEAN’s largest FDI source in 2024 at $42bn — about a fifth of inflows. Singapore dominates inflows as a hub (~63.5%).
Read the analysis →
Logistics & infrastructureOn overall logistics performance the Philippines ties Vietnam at 3.3 — but customs lag, and container volume sits far behind Malaysia and Vietnam.
Read the analysis →
Digital landscapeTwo-thirds of Filipinos are online — but median mobile speed is the peer laggard, and only about half hold a financial account.
Read the analysis →
Trade dependencePhilippine exports are unusually balanced — the US, China, Japan, Hong Kong, ASEAN and the EU each take a mid-teens share. The US-heavy story belongs to Cambodia and Vietnam, not Manila.
Read the analysis →
Education & human capitalFilipinos average 10 years of schooling and near-universal literacy — but PISA math is lowest among peers, and so is the Human Capital Index.
Read the analysis →
Labour & youthAmong its peers, the Philippines has the lowest labour-force participation — 61.4% — and the lowest employment-to-population ratio.
Read the analysis →
Demographics & urbanisationThe Philippines is Southeast Asia’s second-largest population — still growing at 0.81% — while Thailand has already started to shrink. Fertility is already below replacement at 1.89.
Read the analysis →
Energy & commoditiesThe Philippines is a net energy importer with nearly four-fifths of electricity from fossil fuels — and the region’s second nickel miner after Indonesia.
Read the analysis →
RemittancesThe money that comes home
Read the analysis →
Manufacturing & China+1Beyond the China+1 headline
Read the analysis →
Climate & disasterThe Philippines is the region’s people-hit heavyweight — 97.6 million affected across natural disasters from 2015–2024 — and sits near the top on hazard and exposure.
Read the analysis →
Gender gapsThe Philippines ranks best in Southeast Asia on the Global Gender Gap Index — and still posts the lowest female labour-force participation among its peers.
Read the analysis →
Living costs & wagesFilipino mean earnings sit mid-pack in PPP terms — and the statutory minimum wage is the lowest among peers when you take the lowest provincial non-ag floor.
Read the analysis →
Scale & growthThe Philippines is a half-trillion-dollar economy — roughly Malaysia’s size in nominal terms — growing at 4.1% while Vietnam leads the peer set at 7.1%.
Read the analysis →
Tax revenuePhilippine tax take sits mid-pack at 14.4% of GDP — just behind Thailand, ahead of Malaysia and Singapore on the WDI series.
Read the analysis →
Credit & bankingPhilippine bank credit sits mid–low at 52% of GDP — far thinner than Thailand, Malaysia or Vietnam — while NPLs remain moderate at about 3%.
Read the analysis →
External balanceThe Philippines runs a current-account deficit of about 3.3% of GDP — with nearly 7½ months of import cover and external debt still low at 26% of GNI.
Read the analysis →
Social protectionPhilippine pension coverage is a peer strength — but ASPIRE social-protection reach is the weakest of the five, and those figures are from 2018.
Read the analysis →
E-government & civic techPhilippine e-government sits mid-pack globally — EGDI 0.76, up 16 places — with online services stronger than telecom infrastructure.
Read the analysis →
Investment climatePhilippine investment freedom scores as a peer bright spot — but OECD FDI rules still read as among the more closed, and new-business density stays thin.
Read the analysis →
Agriculture & foodAgriculture is still about a fifth of Philippine jobs and under a tenth of GDP — while FAO undernourishment looks low at 3%, but moderate-or-severe food insecurity sits near a third of people.
Read the analysis →
Inflation & policy ratesPhilippine inflation sits near 4.3% with the policy rate at 5% — while Thailand’s CPI is soft at 0.9% and its policy rate is 1%.
Read the analysis →
Services trade & ICT exportsICT is nearly a fifth of Philippine services exports — and about $8.8bn — far denser than Malaysia or Indonesia, while travel is still a thin slice next to Thailand.
Read the analysis →
FDI by sector & sourceASEAN FDI is still finance-heavy at $92bn, while manufacturing more than doubled to $44bn. The US was the largest source in 2024 at $42bn.
Read the analysis →
Tourism recovery 2024ASEAN visitors reached 127.2 million in 2024 — about 88.5% of the 2019 peak — with Thailand and Malaysia still leading. The Philippines sits mid-pack at 5.95 million, now behind Cambodia’s 6.70.
Read the analysis →