{
  "id": 12810787,
  "title": "Inflation, infrastructure freeze seen to hamper property development",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/inflation-infrastructure-freeze-seen-to-hamper-property-development",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-08T05:48:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Philippine Star Business",
    "slug": "philippine-star-business",
    "url": "https://www.philstar.com/real-estate/2026/10/08/2561792/inflation-infrastructure-freeze-seen-hamper-property-development"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Manila, Philippines - Inflation, a drop in public works spending, and slowing economic growth are hampering property development, warned Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian during fresh Senate hearings. GDP growth slowed to 2.3% in the second quarter, the weakest expansion since 2017, prompting rating agencies and multilateral lenders to slash their forecasts. A 32% collapse in public works construction, driven by spending freezes and project delays following corruption investigations, has frozen land development and stalled commercial buildouts along growth corridors. Elevated inflation, reaching 6.1% in August, has eroded household purchasing power. Real estate prices nationwide decelerated to 0.4%, with home values in areas outside Metro Manila contracting by 2.7%. Senate budget scrutiny flagged over 7,000 proposed public works projects due to incomplete site documentation, while the flood control budget was slashed to P107.4 billion. Gatchalian urged the fast-tracking of priority legislative measures to stimulate economic recovery.",
  "summary": "Rising living costs, a sharp drop in public works spending, and slowing economic growth continue to drag on property development.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}