Approved building permits fall 22.6% in Oct.

APPROVED building permits declined by 22.6% year on year in October, signaling a slowdown in construction activity amid economic headwinds, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said in a report.

- By Heather Caitlin P. Mañago

Preliminary data showed building projects covered by the permits fell to 12,705 in October from 16,405 a year earlier.

This was a reversal from the 23.2% expansion in October 2024 and was steeper than the revised 18.5% contraction in September 2025.

In October, construction projects covered 3.48 million square meters (sq.m.) of floor area, down 20.2% year on year from 4.36 million sq.m.

These building projects that received approval were valued at P43.63 billion, 13.5% lower than a year earlier when it reached P54.45 billion.

"The sharp drop in building permits reflects high borrowing costs and tighter liquidity, which forced developers to delay projects amid corruption-related uncertainty and softer consumer demand," Jonathan L. Ravelas, a senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., said in a Viber message.

Marco Antonio C. Agonia, economist at the University of Asia and the Pacific, attributed the decline to the pessimistic economic outlook after weaker-than-expected third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

GDP expanded by an annual 4% in the three months through September, the slowest growth logged since the 3.8% contraction in the first quarter of 2021.

Mr. Ravelas warned that the slowdown in construction, a key driver of economic activity, signals a weaker project pipeline and fewer job opportunities.