Gov't Determined To Rescue Economy

Depending on the duration the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said yesterday that the crisis will drag down the nation’s growth, but the government is prepared to deploy its resources to rescue the economy.

- Chino S. Leyco

Citing preliminary estimates by the National Economic and Development Authority, Dominguez said that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) may contract by 0.66 percent or could grow at a much slower pace of 4.33 percent this year.

Dominguez said the impact of the expected slower GDP on the national government’s revenues would be substantial, thus it requires additional borrowings to cover the shortfall.

Under the zero growth scenario, the Department of Finance (DOF) estimated that it would cost ₱286 billion in foregone revenues, while around ₱318 billion would be incurred if GDP contracted by one percent.