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Curtain formally falls on Season 82 of the UAAP

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo, Senior Reporter

THE truncated Season 82 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) officially drew to a close last Saturday with the closing ceremony done online.

Abruptly cut by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the league and its TV coveror ABS-CBN Sports made sure the season had an appropriate closure with the University of Santo Tomas being crowned as overall champion both for the juniors and seniors divisions, and the Ateneo de Manila University turning over hosting duties to next season’s host De La Salle University.

Beamed across the different social media platforms of ABS-CBN Sports, the hour-long closing ceremony celebrated what was an eventful season for varying reasons, spotlighting the efforts of all eight member schools and the athletes, including those who were unable to finish their season due to the cancellation of the games.

The Growling Tigers won their 44th overall crown with 209 points after ruling five events, namely men’s and women’s beach volleyball; men’s and women’s table tennis, and men’s judo. They also had five silver and three bronze finishes. On the other hand, the Tiger Cubs bagged its sixth straight general championship — 21st overall — with 179 points.

Fifteen student-athletes were also honored with the Athlete Scholar awards, namely, Adamson University’s Rochelle Lalongisip (girls volleyball) and Cleofe Magsayo (softball); Ateneo’s Joaquin Santos (boys swimming) and Chloe Daos (women’s swimming); DLSU’s Raven Alcoseba (boys swimming) and Darius Diamante (men’s football); Far Eastern University’s Cholo Anonuevo (boys basketball) and Clare Castro (women’s basketball); National University’s Camille Clarin (women’s basketball) and Allaney Doroy (girls; chess); University of the East’s Denise Pidlaoan (girls judo) and Leah Lopez (women’s judo); University of the Philippines’ Gabriel Salazar (men’s judo); and UST’s Aljiren Fuchigami (men’s football) and Regina Jurado (girls; volleyball).

Also recognized were the Most Valuable Players from each completed event.

No Athlete of the Year Award was handed out, however.

Instead the league honored all 1,214 student-athletes from canceled events collegiate volleyball, collegiate football, collegiate baseball, collegiate softball, track and field, lawn tennis, and 3×3 basketball.

In April, the UAAP officially decided to scrap the remainder of Season 82 because of the  growing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ATENEO TO LA SALLE
The closing ceremony also had Ateneo turning over hosting chores to La Salle, which has a motto for next season of “Fully Alive, Champions For Life.”

The turnover was conducted between Ateneo University President Fr. Jett Villarin, SJ and his DLSU counterpart Bro. Raymundo Suplido, FSC.

In receiving the hosting duties, Mr. Suplido acknowledged that they have their work cut out for them amid the COVID-19 situation but they vowed to be careful and resilient in staging Season 83, which is being eyed to start early next year.

“For the love of sports, we have to challenge ourselves to continue to excel. It is important that we do so with resilience and fortitude. Also, we must plan and play but with safety and prudence in our minds so that we do not risk the health and safety of our members,” the La Salle official said.

Meanwhile, UAAP Executive Director Rebo Saguisag said over Radyo Singko’s Power and Play with Noli Eala that while it was unfortunate that Season 82 was cut, they were still thankful that they were able to work around the situation and close things out properly.

Looking ahead, Mr. Saguisag shared various challenges present themselves for the league, including the issue on its TV coveror after ABS-CBN Sports was forced to sign off following the non-renewal of its parent network’s franchise by Congress.

The UAAP official said they will continue to evaluate their options and do what is best for the league.

ABS-CBN Sports was home to the UAAP since 2000. Their latest contract ended in May.

PSC online seminar for coaches begins

THE Philippine Sports Commission’s (PSC) online coaching seminar begins on Monday and seeks to continue with its goal of enhancing further local coaches’ competencies and skills and establishing a national standard for sports coaching in the country.

A project under the Philippine Sports Institute’s (PSI) Sports Education and Training Program, the National Sports Coaching Certification Course (NSCCC) was piloted in Tagum City two years ago and in the cities of Legazpi and Davao in 2019.

Organizers said Visayas will have the first go at the online coaches’ certification, with all of the 1,090 slots already full.

“The present situation in the country should not deter us from continuing our programs and services to the sports community, specifically in enhancing the competencies of our coaches in the schools and the LGUs (local government units),” said PSC oversight commissioner for Visayas Ramon Fernandez as he spoke of their efforts amid the ongoing situation with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Sports coaches of elementary and high school student teams in Visayas will be the initial batch of online learners for the course’s Level 1 modules on Sports Philosophy, Sports Pedagogy, Sports Psychology, Sports Physiology, Talent Identification, and Sports Ethics.

Lecturers will be PSC-PSI sports education dean Prof. Henry Daut, PSC-PSI sports psychology head Dr. Karen Katrina Trinidad, PSC-PSI sports physiology head Prof. Josephine Joy Reyes, PSC-PSI sports specialist Prof. Luis Serafin Cosep, and Fr. Fonz Suico, CSSR. A blend of synchronous and asynchronous learning methods will be applied through the use of Google Meet and Google Classroom tools.

Passers of the Level 1 pilot staging in Legazpi and Davao, meanwhile, are also expected to continue with Level 2 online, while a separate course curriculum for coaches of sports for the differently abled is being planned for launch this November.

Luzon will have their sessions for Region 1 and CAR from Aug. 10 to 13, while Mindanao will have theirs for Region 10 from Aug. 17 to 20.

Meanwhile, the PSC shared that its “golden dreams” in the Tokyo Olympics remains a priority despite the pandemic as it continues to work with the different national sports associations (NSAs) in crafting proper training resumption guidelines.

Health professionals from the PSC-MSAS (Medical Scientific Athletes Services) unit started meeting NSAs on July 21 to discuss updated protocol and minimum health standards of training venues with each concerned NSA. The meetings are scheduled to last until July 29.

“The PSC recognizes that our Olympic hopefuls need to maintain momentum and they do that by going back to focused training,” said National Training Director Marc Velasco.

Right now, the Philippines is assured of having at least four representatives in the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021, namely, EJ Obiena (pole vault), Carlos Yulo (gymnastics), and Eumir Felix Marcial and Irish Magno (boxing).

Local sports officials, however, are upbeat that more athletes could join the four in the lead-up to the Games. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Robert ‘The Reaper’ Whittaker leads winners at UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi, United  Arab Emirates

THE Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) capped its successful hosting of events on the “UFC Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Sunday, with former middleweight champion Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker among the winners.

Australian Whittaker (21-5), who lost his UFC title in his previous fight in October last year, made it a successful return to the Octagon by beating fast-rising contender Darren “The Gorilla” Till (18-3-1) from England by unanimous decision, 48-47, 48-47 and 48-47, in their headlining UFC Fight Night battle.

Also emerging victorious were light heavyweight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, heavyweight Fabricio “Val Cavalo” Werdum and women’s strawweight Carla “Cookie Monster” Esparza.

Referee Herb Dean briefly stopped the action late in the round after a cut opened Mr. Whittaker’s ear.

Despite bleeding heavily from the cut, Mr. Whittaker continued to fight and hung on for the UD victory.

“It was a stressful fight. I hope the fans liked it because it was one of the most technical fights I have been part of. It showed both fighters’ strengths,” said Mr. Whittaker after the fight.

Meanwhile, Brazilian Rua (27-11-1) made it 3-0 over compatriot Antonio “Lil Nog” Nogueira in their overall matchups with a split decision win, 29-28, 28-29 and 29-28.

In their previous two fights in 2015 and 2005, Mr. Rua was a winner both times by unanimous decision.

Knicks mentor

It didn’t take ESPN scribe Adrian Wojnarowski long to make his presence felt anew. In fact, one day was all he needed to reclaim sports headlines; his two-week suspension by the media giant ended Friday, and he was already breaking news that the Knicks had hired Tom Thibodeau to be their next head coach when weekend struck. Which was just fine by him, as well as by all and sundry in hoops circles; he immediately regretted sending a sitting senator an F-bomb via his office email address, leading to his ban and all the #FreeWoj hashtags. Everybody knew the byline and not the body was his rightful place in an article.

It’s fair to argue that Wojnarowski was the beneficiary of both his ties and timing. Had the Knicks been able to come to an agreement with Thibodeau before he returned to work, some other industrious insider could well have hogged the print space. On the flipside, that alternate reality would have added insult to injury as the byproduct of sheer bad luck; the franchise was already on its eighth month without a head coach, the longest in its history. Not that prudence wasn’t required; if anything, ownership had to be extra cautious after cycling through 13 bench tacticians in the last two decades. That it boasts of a single playoff series win in those 20 years, and that it will continue to pay for the services of ousted mentor David Fizdale until 2023, speak volumes of the viability — or lack thereof — of its previous decision-making processes.

To be sure, the job was Thibodeau’s to lose from the outset, and not simply because he once served as a Knicks assistant in the successful Jeff Van Gundy dispensation. Even without counting his close relationship with newly installed team president Leon Rose, he had his own proven accomplishments to tout. Never mind his unceremonious ouster from the Timberwolves early last year; more than anything else, the development was a reflection of the pitfalls of combining front-office and sideline work. Moving forward, he’s likely to cede talent assessment to Rose, executive vice-president William Wesley, and general manager Scott Perry while focusing on player development.

No doubt, more details of the working arrangements will crop up courtesy of Wojnarowski (and other NBA reporters). Meanwhile, he’ll be counted on to provide details on contractual terms between the Knicks and Thibodeau, as negotiated by CAA Sports agent Spencer Breecker. And while the development will serve the culmination of an exhaustive search that required connecting with 11 candidates over the last eight weeks, it’s just the start of the franchise’s climb to respect and respectability.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Dating app users navigate new norms as real-life meetings return

Daters are adjusting to shifting norms: random hookups are fast being replaced with weeks-long virtual courting.

Kimberly Chao’s first date was canceled after he told her he might have caught the coronavirus. It took three negative tests and multiple video calls before he convinced her to finally meet in person—three months after they started chatting on a dating app.

With restaurants and bars closed at the time, her date suggested they stroll around in New York City’s Soho area to check out protest street art on boarded-up store windows. They wore masks the whole time in their 90-minute meet-up.

“We hugged at the end—even the hug made me kind of nervous,” Ms. Chao, a 37-year-old independent financial adviser in New York, recalls that date in early June.

While the pandemic has dramatically changed the playbook for in-person dating, especially in hard-hit areas like New York, it hasn’t stopped stay-at-home singletons from craving human connection. Online dating companies are seeing a rebound in the US, with daily downloads of major apps for such connections bouncing back from earlier lows this year to pre-COVID levels, according to estimates by Apptopia.

Daters are adjusting to shifting norms: random hookups are fast being replaced with weeks-long virtual courting. Good hygiene and being socially responsible are now prerequisites, along with a clear agreement on social distancing and masks for in-person meetings.

“We are more bullish on dating than we were when we initiated coverage on Match in early June,” said Morgan Stanley analyst Lauren Cassel, citing higher engagement and pent-up demand for human interaction during this period for Match Group Inc.

In a report this week, her team estimated more people downloaded Match’s Tinder app last quarter during the pandemic than analysts tracking the company had expected. The Dallas-based owner of apps including OkCupid and Hinge finalized its spinoff from IAC/InterActiveCorp. earlier this month and added new board members including actor Ryan Reynolds.

VIDEO CONNECTIONS
During the pandemic, dating apps also rushed to accommodate users with in-app video features and speed dating games that weren’t needed in the past. While video dates could migrate to Zoom or Skype, many are reluctant to give out contact information and prefer to keep communications within the app, said Geoff Cook, chief executive officer of The Meet Group Inc., which introduced video and livestreaming on its core platforms including MeetMe and Skout three years ago.

The company’s shares have risen 24% since the start of the year and have rebounded from the plunge in March when cities including New York and Los Angeles shut down non-essential businesses and pushed people to stay home.

COVID-19 is also changing the dating patterns for July and August, traditionally slow months for online dating as people go out to socialize and meet potential dates through mingling. Not this summer, said Kenji Yamazaki, co-founder of EastMeetEast, an Asian American dating app, whose users continued to engage on livestreaming at a high level since that trend picked up in March.

Still, there’s a limit to video dates, said Khadijah Diaz, 28, who has been using Bumble, Tinder, Hinge, and a few Facebook dating groups for Black people in Houston.

“It’s not the same as meeting people face-to-face and finding the energy,” Ms. Diaz said. “For me to continuously be interested in somebody, I need to see them face-to-face.”

‘ANTIBODY POSITIVE’
Others are also finding ways to accelerate the return to real-world dating. On Grindr, a popular gay dating app, some users add “antibody positive” in profile pages to alleviate concerns of prospective dates.

In Meet Group’s community survey of more than 2,500 people in the US, 81% say they would meet someone they met on a dating app tomorrow, and 71% would like their first date to wear a mask. More than half the respondents say going to work or school is riskier than going on a first date for an outdoor meal or coffee.

Concerns about the pandemic continue to linger, prompting the New Hope, Pennsylvania-based company to form a “Safer Dating Advisory Board” to provide dating guidelines from health experts. It’s also considering adding a filter for users to opt in for virtual dating-only, in order to avoid a mismatch of expectations.

“It was clear and it remains to be clear that people are fearful of the virus,” Mr. Cook said. “Fear might have peaked in April-May, but they continue to insist on mask-wearing.”

And longer periods of virtual dating may just become the norm to screen prospective partners. Even as cities begin to ease measures and allow restaurants and bars to gradually reopen, Match spokeswoman Vidhya Murugesan said the company continues to see users connecting through features such as in-app video chats before deciding to meet in person.

“Even after the pandemic, I actually like doing a lot of videos and calls before meeting a person. It would save me a lot of time,” said Ms. Chao, who didn’t mind her video dates appearing in work-out clothes with beard unshaved and hair untrimmed, as many of them did. “Before, I would go on a date, but after a few minutes, I realize I shouldn’t have gone.” — Bloomberg

Thousands of stranded Filipinos crammed into baseball stadium amid coronavirus risks

Officials had planned for 7,500 people to arrive at the stadium from Friday, but were caught out when another 2,000 people who were not yet scheduled to travel headed there anyway. Image via The STAR/Miguel de Guzman.

Thousands of Filipinos were crammed into a baseball stadium in Manila on Saturday, breaking social distancing rules despite coronavirus risks, after people wanting to return to their home provinces flooded a government transportation program.

Officials had reserved the stadium as a place to test people before transporting them back to their home provinces under a program to help people who had lost their jobs in the capital return to their families elsewhere.

Officials had planned for 7,500 people to arrive at the stadium from Friday, but were caught out when another 2,000 people who were not yet scheduled to travel headed there anyway.

“Because of the overflowing number of people, we can no longer control (the situation) and the relevance of social distancing had been diminished,” Assistant Secretary Joseph Encabo, who is overseeing the government’s transportation assistance program, told Reuters by phone.

Police were deployed to urge social distancing, but people, including the elderly, children, and pregnant women, were seen in close contact with each other. Some were not wearing masks.

Many of those at the stadium had got stuck in the capital when it imposed one of the strictest and longest lockdowns in mid-March in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

That was eased at the start of June, allowing businesses to reopen in a limited capacity, but schools remain shut and mass gatherings are banned. People must wear masks in public and observe one-meter social distancing, while children and the elderly are urged to stay at home.

Coronavirus cases have more than quadrupled since restrictions were eased to 78,412, with more than half of those in the capital and surrounding areas.

Among those at the stadium was Fred Marick Ukol, 40, who became stuck in Manila after his flight to Australia, where he had found work as a welder, was canceled.

“We don’t have work and now all of our savings have dried up because of the lockdown,” Mr. Ukol said, referring to himself and fellow overseas Filipino workers.

Mr. Encabo said everybody at the stadium would undergo rapid testing for COVID-19 and must be cleared before being allowed to board the buses, sea vessels, and trains the government has prepared. — Reuters

Record numbers of coronavirus cases in every global region — Reuters tally

Many countries, especially those where officials eased earlier social distancing lockdowns, are experiencing a second peak more than a month after recording their first.

Almost 40 countries have reported record single-day increases in coronavirus infections over the past week, around double the number that did so the previous week, according to a Reuters tally showing a pick-up in the pandemic in every region of the world.

The rate of cases has been increasing not only in countries like the United States, Brazil, and India, which have dominated global headlines with large outbreaks, but in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Bolivia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Bulgaria, Belgium, Uzbekistan, and Israel, among others.

Many countries, especially those where officials eased earlier social distancing lockdowns, are experiencing a second peak more than a month after recording their first.

“We will not be going back to the ‘old normal’. The pandemic has already changed the way we live our lives,” World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said this week. “We’re asking everyone to treat the decisions about where they go, what they do and who they meet with as life-and-death decisions—because they are.”

The Reuters data, compiled from official reports, shows a steady rise in the number of countries reporting record daily increases in the virus that causes COVID-19 over the past month. At least seven countries recorded such increases three weeks ago, rising to at least 13 countries two weeks ago to at least 20 countries last week and to 37 countries this week.

The true numbers of both cases and deaths are almost certainly underreported, particularly in countries with poorer health care systems, health experts and officials say. For this report, the Reuters data was restricted to countries that provide regular daily numbers.

A surge in cases usually precedes a rise in deaths by a couple of weeks.

The United States remains at the top of the case list, this week passing more than 4 million cases and recording more than 1,000 deaths for four consecutive days. Brazil and India—which epidemiologists say is still likely months from hitting its peak—have also exceeded 1 million cases.

SECOND WAVE
The data reveals a growing number of resurgent cases in countries across all regions.

In Australia, officials enforced a six-week partial lockdown and made face masks mandatory for residents in the country’s second-largest city, Melbourne, after a fresh outbreak.

Australia and Japan, which also posted a daily case record this week, both warned of a rise in infections among young people, many of whom celebrated the end of social restrictions at bars and parties.

In Mexico, which also posted a daily record this week and has the fourth-highest death toll of any country, officials warned that a downward trend in case numbers that began in mid-June—about the time the city began relaxing social distancing measures – could reverse.

Based on the rate of hospital admissions over the past week, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said, hospitalization levels by October could exceed those registered in June, the height of the pandemic.

“It is important to recognize that if we do not change the trend, there could be exponential growth,” she said.

In Europe, where the summer vacation season is in full swing, a new daily record figure in Spain is likely to deter tourists from visiting one of the continent’s most popular destinations.

In Africa, Kenya recorded a record high daily case number less than two weeks after reopening activity, including domestic passenger flights. President Uhuru Kenyatta, who had announced international flights would resume on Aug. 1, has summoned officials to an emergency meeting on Monday to discuss the surge in cases.

In the Middle East, Oman imposed new restrictions that begin on Saturday in addition to a two-week lockdown that will overlap the Islamic feast of Eid al-Adha after reporting a record number of cases. — Reuters

Security Bank raises P13.5 billion from expanded 2-year bond issue

Security Bank Corp. said Friday it raised proceeds of P13.5 billion from a bond issue after it had to expand its offering due to strong demand.

“Our bonds were met with strong demand and we had to increase our original issue size by 2.7 times to accommodate the orders,” Security Bank Executive Vice President and Treasurer Raul Martin A. Pedro was quoted as saying in a filing.

The two-year issue has a fixed coupon of 3.125%.

The initial target was to raise P5 billion.

The public offer period ran between June 23 and July 3, closing ahead of the initially scheduled July 15.

Investments came in minimum denominations of P1 million and in increments of P100,000 thereafter.

The bank hopes to raise P100 billion pesos in its current bond and commercial paper program.

Security Bank has said the proceeds will help “extend the tenor of our liabilities” and fund regular lending activities.

Philippine Commercial Capital, Inc. (PCCI) was the sole bookrunner for the transaction. PCCI and Security Bank Capital Investment Corp. were the joint lead arrangers and selling agents.

Security Bank’s net earnings rose 21% year-on-year to P2.9 billion in the first quarter. Revenue rose 75% to P13.2 billion, supported by growth in core businesses as well as trading gains.

security Bank shares fell P2.30 to P97.70 Friday. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

Peso at highest levels since late 2016 as US failure to contain coronavirus pressures dollar

The peso rallied against the dollar Friday to its strongest level since November 2016 with dollar sentiment dented by the US failure to contain its coronavirus infection levels.

The peso closed at P49.33, against its P49.365 finish Thursday, according to the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The week-earlier close was P49.44 on July 17.

The Friday close was the peso’s strongest since closing at P49.17 on Nov. 15, 2016, according to Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort.

The peso opened at P49.38. The session low was P49.40 and the high P49.325.

Dollar volumes totalled $472.5 million, against $481.2 million on Thursday.

The dollar lost favor due to the surge in US infections, UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion said.

“The peso still trended toward strength as the US continues its bout against increasing COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) infections,” he said in a text message.

COVID-19 patients in the US hit more than four million Thursday. The US new-infection rate is 2,600 per hour, the highest in the world.

Mr. Ricafort said the dollar also weakened after the release of the weekly jobless claims.

The weekly jobless claims data released Thursday showed nearly 32 million people receiving unemployment benefits in early July. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

Philippines faces bumpy economic recovery

By Luz Wendy T. Noble and Beatrice M. Laforga, Reporters

The Philippine economy could shrink by as much as 3.1% this year after months of quarantine that is one of the strictest and longest in the world, amid a surge in coronavirus infections, according to Moody’s Analytics.

The Southeast Asian country would probably be left behind by its peers in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of recovery, Steve Cochrane, chief economist in the region at Moody’s Analytics, said in a report on Friday.

The projection is worse than Moody’s 1.8% contraction estimate last month and 6.9% growth forecast in January before the pandemic.

The new forecast considered the extension of various levels of lockdown in many parts of the country that caused longer-than-expected economic disruptions, Mr. Cochrane said in an e-mailed reply to questions.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte locked down the entire Luzon island in mid-March, suspending work, classes and public transportation to contain the pandemic. The lockdown in most parts of the country had been eased, with more businesses allowed to reopen with minimal workforce.

Mr. Cochrane said the “very sharp” drop in exports could aggravate the situation.

“On a three-month moving average basis, exports are down by over 35% on a year-to-year basis as of May,” he said. “This is the sharpest downturn across the Asia-Pacific region and matched only by India’s downturn in exports.”

The Philippines will be an exception to the gradual recovery that the rest of the region will experience from July to September, Mr. Cochrane said in the report.

“All countries within the APAC region are expected to enjoy a positive economic bounce in the third quarter except for the Philippines, which has suffered the longest and strictest lockdown in the region and whose count of COVID-19 cases has accelerated this month,” he said.

Local coronavirus infections topped 76,000 on Friday, with almost 1,900 deaths, the Health department said.

International travel and tourism across the region would be the slowest to recover as restrictions are extended up to next year, Mr. Cochrane said.

“This is significant for the small open economies of Hong Kong and Singapore, and for tourism-dependent economies such as Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam,” he said.

He added that the Philippines and Indonesia would remain laggards given their “tepid fiscal support.”

“The most important policy moves will be to bring the spread of COVID-19 under control and reduce the number of new cases on a sustained basis,” he said. “Only then can the government broadly open up the economy once again.”

Moody’s also expects a slower recovery for the Philippines next year, at 5.2% growth from a previous 6.2% estimate.

The lockdown will hurt household spending, which makes up about three-quarters of the economy, Mr. Cochrane said. “Households will work to replenish depleted savings rather than spend on goods and services that are not essential.”

OUT OF THE HOLE

Meanwhile, the Philippine economy faces a long and bumpy recovery after it slips into a recession this year, Nicholas Antonio T. Mapa, a senior economist at ING Bank NV Manila Branch, said at an online briefing on Friday.

It might take years before it bounces back to pre-pandemic growth levels of 6%, he added.

Economic output is expected to shrink for the rest of the year after a 0.2% contraction in the three months through March. The slump is expected to have worsened in the second quarter, when much of the country was locked down.

Mr. Mapa said gross domestic product might have slumped by 6.3% in the second quarter, signaling the start of a recession as consumption, the backbone of the Philippine economy, was “knocked out.”

He said economic output would continue to shrink by 5.8% in the third quarter and by 3.5% in the three months through December.

He said the economy would probably grow by 3.5%, 5.7%, 5.8% and 4.5% in the four quarters of next year, and by 5.2%, 4.3%, 4.2% and 5.1% in the four quarters of 2022.

“After we get out of that hole that we crash-landed onto, it might take longer to get back to that 6% trajectory,” he said.

Economic growth has largely been anchored on robust consumer spending, backed by strong job market expectations, remittances from workers overseas and confidence from both consumers and investors before the pandemic, Mr. Mapa said.

Economic managers expect the economy to shrink by 2-3.4% this year and bounce back to 8-9% growth next year.

A strong recovery next year is possible if the government can bring back consumer confidence to its pre-coronavirus levels, Mr. Mapa said.

“There’s only one sector that could really spend to augment all of these right now and it’s the government,” he said, adding that “growth prospects depend largely on the fiscal response.”

Zero interest rate policy unlikely, says BSP chief

The Philippine central bank is not inclined to adopt a zero interest rate policy as the government eases lockdown restrictions during the pandemic, Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said on Thursday.

“In my view, not at the moment because as I’ve said before, we have paused,” he told congressmen during a hearing in mixed English and Filipino when asked if the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) would follow the trend of other central bank with near-zero interest rates.

He noted that the central bank had slashed key rates by 175 basis points this year to 2.25% to stimulate growth the shield the economy from the effects of the pandemic. He added that BSP is assessing whether another rate cut is needed.

“We’re in a waiting position,” Mr. Diokno said, adding that he does not see local interest rates at zero.

He advised lawmakers to be cautious in drafting a stimulus package because not all industries can recover.

“We cannot save all,” the governor said. “The resources of the government are finite.”

The House of Representatives is pushing for a P1.3-trillion stimulus package for sectors hit hard by the lockdown including tourism, transportation, agri-fisheries, and micro, small and medium enterprises.

“You can convert that into a multi-year fiscal plan for the pandemic,” Mr. Diokno told the virtual hearing.

He said the central bank is seeking the passage of a measure that will allow the transfer of bad loans to asset management companies and increase the maximum loan guarantee coverage for small businesses.

Also among its priorities are bills providing protection to financial consumers and proposed changes to the law on deposit secrecy, he said. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

Business groups ask Duterte to push economic measures

Business groups on Friday asked the government of President Rodrigo R. Duterte to push legislation that will ensure economic recovery and the survival of small entrepreneurs amid a coronavirus pandemic.

The government should “work double time” in enacting economic measures both in Congress and through executive implementation, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Employers Confederation of the Philippines and Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. said in a joint statement.

Mr. Duterte is set to deliver his annual state of the nation address on Monday, when both the Senate and House of Representatives resume sessions.

“There had been many delays already in pushing for these reforms as the government and private sector got sidetracked by disasters and hazards even at the beginning of the year,” they said.

They sought the passage of a bill that will cut corporate income tx to 25% from 30% and give investors tax and nontax incentives, which they said will attract investments and help small companies recover.

The business groups said delaying the legislation could worsen the effects of investor uncertainty since the bill was first debated.

They also sought the passage of stimulus measures — one for accelerated recovery and another to cut joblessness.

The House has approved the P1.3-trillion stimulus package on third and final reading on June 4. It is pending at the Senate committee level.

Congressmen also approved on third reading on June 5 the bill that will allot P1.5 trillion for infrastructure projects over three years, meant to cut the jobless rate. No Senate counterpart measure has been filed.

“These bills are necessary in providing essential support for critically impacted farmers and fisherfolk, small businesses, tourism, transportation and other industries,” the business groups said.

They also sought the approval of measures seeking to change the Public Services Act, Magna Carta for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and the charter of the Philippine Ports Authority, aside from the proposed Open Access in Data Transmission Act, Warehouse Receipts Act, and Apprenticeship Training System Act.

The groups asked the Executive branch to enforce a national ID system, fund the government’s online trading facilitation portal and prioritize farm/fishing areas-to-market roads.

They also said the government should boost agri- and aquaculture infrastructure projects and expand private sector participation in planning the lifting of various levels of community lockdown.

“We are confident that these measures, if expeditiously enacted, will significantly help in the joint government and private sector objectives of recovery towards higher and sustained economic performance,” they said. — Arjay L. Balinbin

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