Small firms face 'instant' death, uncertainty as COVID19 slaps economy
MANILA - Events caterer Arabella Bautista is losing at least P80,000 a month since the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown started, excluding what she could have earned from her specialty cakes.
"Napakalaking kawalan sa akin ito. But it is also hard para sa mga partners ko at sa mga taong nagwo-work para sa akin," 41-year old mother of 3 told ABS-CBN News. Second quarter gross domestic product could be worse, officials said, as it would cover majority of the lockdowns imposed to stem the spread of the disease. In a virtual briefing BSP Gov. Benjamin Diokno told reporters that a single digit contraction in the second quarter "is nice," 10 to 15 [percent] is tolerable, while anything higher than 20 "could be problematic."
Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua said easing the restrictions in June reopened at least 75 percent of the economy.EMBED Caption: The computer shop business has been on a decline but the pandemic made it instant, young entrepreneur Keith Varias said.At 29 years old, former Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and Citi 2017 Youth Entrepreneur of the Year awardee Keith Varias and his growing community-based IT business was also put to a halt by the pandemic.
"It's extremely hard. This is the only income source I have. Taking it away just like that put me in a very difficult position. Especially we're not prepared. I am very aggressive in reinvesting and I didn't save for times like these," Varias told ABS-CBN News.
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