Biz sector hangs on in last four months of 2020

The remaining four months of 2020 will be crucial to the local business sector as they try to keep afloat amid the crunch caused by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

Atty. Jobert Peñaflorida, president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), said the last quarter of the year will be challenging for their sector which is feeling the brunt of the health crisis.

“Everyone is trying to survive if not thrive pero bal-an ta gid ya, unless and until we have a vaccine, then we can’t really go back to the normal life,” Peñaflorida said in an interview.

Despite the city sliding down to a more relaxed Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ), Peñaflorida said the business sector is still struggling to regain its market that is heavily affected by the pandemic.

According to Peñaflorida, the market is affected by the hesitation of people to go out.

“Ang confidence sang mga tawo to go out…everyone is hesitant to leave their houses,” he said.

He added that lack of employment and lost business opportunities have affected the purchasing power of Ilonggos, hence, they are only focused on buying essential goods.

Tourism also slowed down due to the lack of regular flights in the metro.

“Wala regular flights so tourism is basically down. Iloilo is services-oriented so damo gid affected,” he said.

Due to income losses, the budget for expenses, rents, and salary of the employee have also become limited, according to Peñaflorida.

“Another challenge aside from the significant reduction in sales are our expenses, rents, and salary of our employees. Kon kulang imo sales, it would be very difficult to budget,” he said.

Peñaflorida said it will be a long time for businesses in the metro to go back to normalcy unless a vaccine against COVID-19 is available.

Based on latest reports, Iloilo province lost an estimated P22.4 billion to COVID-19, particularly in transport (P191.7B), agriculture (P119.6B), business/trade (P6.9B), employment (P6.2B), tourism (P2.6 billion), information technology (P2.5B), airline industry (P2.3B), and overseas remittances (P380 million).

Iloilo City estimated that it lost P7.4 billion pesos in tourism receipts from March 15 to June 15, 2020.

Despite the challenges, PCCI alongside other members of the local business sector in the metro are adjusting to the new normal by coming up with innovations.

On Sept 25-27, Peñaflorida said PCCI together with Iloilo Hotel Restaurants & Resorts Association (IHRRA) will be holding Iloilo Market 2020 to help entrepreneurs in the metro resuscitate.

In a statement, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas said the business sector in the metro has been rising up to the challenges brought about by the pandemic.

“As we continue to advance, we can also see the rise and adjustments of the business sector and the gradual increase in the economy. Jobs have been made available as many of the sectors opened more doors for our fellow Ilonggos,” he said. (ERS)