MANILA - THE number of swine flu cases in the Philippines, where one person has already died of the virus, jumped by 123 in the past two days, a government official said on Thursday.

The new infections, which include three foreigners, bring the Philippines' cumulative total to 727 cases among a population of 90 million people, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said.

'We want to make it clear that high-risk groups, once they have the flu symptoms, should immediately go to their doctor,' he told reporters.

The Philippines now ranks 11th worldwide for the number of A (H1N1) cases.

The country's House of Representatives shut down for five days this week after the death of one congressional staff who was diagnosed with the virus, while the education department has said 45 schools have declared emergency holidays.

Spokesmen for President Gloria Arroyo on Thursday said there was official concern that fears about the disease could hurt consumer spending and further weaken the economy.

Economic growth slowed to 0.4 per cent in the three months to March, down from 2.9 per cent in the last three months of 2008. -- AFP