More businesses will face permanent closure if lockdowns continue – PCCI
The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) is urging the government to allow businesses to resume full operations, warning that many are facing the possibility of permanent closure if lockdowns continue.
The largest business organization in the country said 50 per cent of the members in its local chambers in Luzon and Mindanao have closed down, while employment among those that continue to operate is down to 25 to 30 per cent.
In a statement, PCCI president Benedicto Yujuico said, “Obviously, we don’t need economists to tell us there could be a faster slide and steeper decline in GDP (gross domestic product) during the second quarter when economic activity was reduced to a minimum. Extending the lockdown further could already spell disaster for the country.”
The organization said that its members want lockdowns to be eased and full economic activity to “resume soonest to allow them to recover.”
