First Metro Investment Corporation, the investment banking arm of Metrobank Group, expects the Philippines to become the fastest growing economy in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-5 this year, clocking in as much as 7.5% growth. The Philippine economy grew 6.9 percent in the third quarter, exceeding all estimates in a Bloomberg survey and cementing its position as one of the fastest-expanding in the world. In its Asian Development Outlook Supplement, the ADB maintained its projection for 5.8% growth for developing Asia in 2018, while hiking its estimate for 2017 to 6.0% from 5.9%.