Change in the storyboard

Even with the economy cruising at a steady 5.5 percent GDP growth in the second quarter of 2025 and inflation easing to 1.7 percent in September, recent developments have prompted a second look at market sentiment.

- ANTONIO SAMSON

The news narrative has suddenly become fraught with uncertainty and unexpected twists.

Is this change in the storyboard going to leave its mark on economic perceptions as more recent news items have shifted to more common natural disasters like typhoons and earthquakes?

Scenario-building is an approach to plan and explore various actions and reactions and come up with strategies to suit different storyboards. A set scenario for the year can be derailed by unexpected events like a two-year pandemic, a super typhoon that affects agriculture or investigations into public works projects.

The “scenario” (sometimes called a storyboard) is a cinematic method used to shoot a movie with different scenes, characters, script, costumes, props and endings. The twists in the plot allow the director to lay out the story and determine the cost of production.

Scenarios can also be applied to business planning, economic projections and political events.

Planners talk of “best case” and “worst case” scenarios as convenient labels for the conclusion of a string of events whether beneficial or harmful to a particular segment of a country. Clearly, one side’s best case may be the opposing side’s worst one. Scenarios differ according to the desired status of the principals involved.