NEDA: 75% of economy opened up after relaxing quarantine measures

About three-fourths of the Philippine economy has reopened after the government relaxed quarantine measures to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) spread, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said Friday.

“After two months of ECQ (enhanced community quarantine), most of the country is now in GCQ (general community quarantine) and modified GCQ... that means, around 75% of the economy has been opened up,” NEDA Acting Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said in a virtual press briefing.

The government enforced strict quarantine measures to arrest the spread of COVID-19 from March 17 to May 31. The lockdown forced several businesses to temporarily close, bringing the economy to a halt.

As the entire country began to shift to more relaxed quarantine measures mid-May towards June, several businesses were allowed to reopen.

In the first quarter of 2020, the Philippine economy contracted for the first time since 1998 as the gross domestic product (GDP) clocked in at -0.2%. 

With the economy seen to further contract in the second quarter, economic managers project the GDP to shrink further by 2.0% to 3.4% for the entire 2020.

“Our projection for the full year is still minus 2 to minus 3.4%. We are reviewing that regularly, weekly in these past few months to determine whether there is revision of projection,” Chua said.

“So far, given the results we have seen second quarter will still hit hard and we can expect gradual recovery to begin in third and fourth quarter so that we achieve a low damage as possible for the full year,” he added. —LDF, GMA News