The economy was seen expanding 5.9 percent in the second half, with fullyear growth expected to hit 5.3 percent from 5.7 percent in 2004, Santos told reporters on the sidelines of a budget hearing at the Senate.

"There was no unusual weather disturbance in the third quarter," Santos said. "We have a good chance of hitting the fullyear target."

The government, which is expected to announce official third-quarter growth figures in late November, has set a gross domestic product growth target of 5.3 to 6.3 percent this year.

It has said it expects to hit the low end of that target due to rising oil prices and a weak agriculture sector in the first half.

The farm sector — comprising nearly a third of the economy — grew just 0.7 percent in the first half from a year earlier due to severe damage to crops brought about by the El Niño dry weather pattern.

In the first half, GDP expanded 4.7 percent from a year earlier.

The economy grew 4.8 percent in the second quarter from the same 2004 period, beating the median forecast of a 4.6 percent rise in a Reuters poll.

The country’s second quarter economic growth was the fourth-best performance in the region after China, which grew 9.5 percent in the period, Indonesia, and Singapore.

The economy grew 1.4 percent in the second quarter from the first quarter, supported by healthy consumer spending fuelled by remittances from overseas workers.

The economic planning agency earlier said agriculture is forecast to grow 5.1 percent in the second half from a year earlier; industry by 4.7 percent; and services by 6.5 percent.

The central bank expects GDP growth of 5.0 percent this year. (Reuters)