Davao City has cemented its position as the economic center of the southern Philippines after its economy reached ₱601.68 billion in 2025, placing it among the country’s 10 largest local economies and making it the only entry from the Visayas and Mindanao in the national top 10.
The figure came from the 2025 Provincial Product Accounts released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on August 28, covering all 82 provinces and 33 highly urbanized cities. Davao City’s gross domestic product was measured at constant 2018 prices, which removes the effect of inflation and reflects changes in actual economic output.
The city’s economy expanded by approximately ₱26.96 billion from ₱574.72 billion in 2024, equivalent to growth of about 4.7 percent. The latest increase followed a strong 2024 performance, when Davao City’s economy grew by 7.9 percent.
Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte welcomed the figures as evidence of the confidence that businesses, investors and residents continue to place in the city.
“Every time a business chooses Davao, every time an investor puts their confidence in our city, and every time a Dabawenyo finds a job and provides a better life for their family, I see more than numbers,” Duterte said.
“I see trust. I see hope. I see the Davao we have worked so hard to build together,” he added.
The city’s economic standing is reinforced by labor conditions across the broader Davao Region. PSA figures released on September 10 showed that the region recorded a 3.9-percent unemployment rate in July 2026, substantially below the national rate of 6 percent during the same period.
Davao Region consequently posted an employment rate of 96.1 percent, compared with 94 percent nationwide. Its labor force also expanded to an estimated four million people from 3.90 million in July 2025, while labor force participation climbed from 61 percent to 67.9 percent.
The regional unemployment rate rose slightly from 3.5 percent a year earlier, but underemployment improved. The share of employed residents seeking additional work or longer hours declined from 10.5 percent in July 2025 to 9 percent in July 2026.
