Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez on Monday welcomed the improvement in the country’s manufacturing performance in January, noting this signals economic recovery for the Philippines.
The IHS Markit Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey reported that the country’s manufacturing sector improved for the first time since March 2020 with a score of 52.5, above the neutral score of 50.
“We are encouraged by the signs of economic recovery that we are seeing, not only in the January manufacturing PMI but also those that point towards longer-lasting economic rebound. Clearly, the whole-of-government effort on the calibrated and safe reopening of the economy was key to this,” Lopez said in a statement.
Lopez added the latest PMI survey on the Philippine manufacturing sector underscores the importance of the REBUILD – Revitalizing Businesses, Investments, Livelihoods, and Domestic Demand – economic strategy of the government.
DTI’s REBUILD strategy aims to bring back consumer confidence to revitalize domestic demand and create more opportunities for local manufacturers.
“The increase in PMI is a good development and we expect more gains for the economy,” he added.
Lopez said the government is aware of the challenges faced by Philippine-based manufacturers, particularly issues on supply chain disruptions and rising input costs.
“We will address these in the Recovery Cluster of the National Task Force, especially in the Task Group on Economic Recovery (TGER) to ensure that we can sustain the expansion of the manufacturing sector in the coming months,” he added.
The TGER was created to push programs that would restimulate economic activities in the country to counter the adverse impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
The task group’s programs focus on assisting the labor force to be work-ready and be able to adapt to the changing needs of industries, taking advantage of technology for continued business operations, and promoting the country as an investment destination and safe destination for tourism.
Some of the programs vital for economic recovery include the Department of Public Works and Highways’ Roads Leveraging Linkages for Industry and Trade (ROLL-IT) program that aims to improve mobility of goods and people; Department of Science and Technology’s programs to improve the competitiveness of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) such as the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading (SETUP) program, the Collaborative R&D to Leverage Philippines Economy (CRADLE) program, and the Business Innovation through Science and Technology (BIST) for Industry program; and Department of Labor and Employment’s programs for training and reskilling the workforce as well as livelihood packages and virtual platform for referral and placement for the unemployed.
“These are just a few of the programs being implemented and there are a lot more. What is important here is that the whole-of-society is working with industry, local governments, and communities to ensure that businesses do not just survive but continue to be competitive in the long run post-pandemic while practicing minimum health standards to prevent the spread of Covid-19,” Lopez said.
The DTI chief is also looking forward to the passage of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives (CREATE) bill that will rationalize fiscal incentives for registered enterprises and will cut the corporate income tax rate from 30 percent to 25 percent retroactive from July 1, 2020. (PNA)
