The threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Delta variant poses serious challenges to the economy, particularly to the labor market, according to the Department of Finance (DOF).
In its economic bulletin released yesterday, the DOF said the previous imposition of stricter quarantine measures in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus bubble area has cost the economy more than two million jobs lost in April.
The DOF said the easing of restrictions recovered more than 1.4 million jobs in May and another 360,000 in June, leaving some quarter million jobs yet to be recovered from the March employment level.
“The recovery in employment most likely gingerly continued through July,” the DOF said.
However, the NCR is under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) from August 6 to 20, while some other regions and provinces were also placed under tighter restrictions amid the increasing number of COVID-19 cases due to the threat brought by the Delta variant.
“The threat of the much more virulent Delta variant poses serious challenges to the economy in general and the labor market in particular,” the DOF said.
“The subsequent re-imposition of stricter quarantine measures in August will have consequences on the nascent green shoots. Such measures are nevertheless precautionary in nature to prevent the much greater evil of spikes in daily cases,” it added.
The DOF said the arrival of more vaccine supplies and the ramped up administration of shots among the population, including economic frontliners, will help the country on the way to weathering the health crisis.
In an earlier report, the DOF said the unemployment rate may remain elevated in 2022.
Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority shows that the country’s jobless rate stands at 7.7 percent in June 2021, translating to 3.76 million Filipinos 15 years old and over unemployed during the month.
In 2019, or prior to the pandemic, the unemployment rate was estimated at 5.1 percent.
“In a base case scenario, the unemployment rate can still be within the range of 6.7 to 7.6 percent in 2022,” according to the DOF’s Macroeconomic Framework and General Fiscal Policies for FY 2022: Economic Recovery and Structural Reform report.
Recent estimates by the National Economic and Development Authority showed that each week of ECQ in the NCR alone will increase the number of poor people by up to 177,000 and 444,000 more will be out of work. – Angela Celis
