The Philippines placed the Metro Manila region and nearby provinces under lockdown for a week from today to stem the nation’s worst COVID-19 surge that is overwhelming hospitals in its key economic area.
The national capital region (NCR) and the adjacent Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal provinces would be under an enhanced community quarantine, the nation’s strictest classification of movement curbs, until Sunday, Philippine government spokesman Harry Roque said on Saturday.
A curfew from 6pm to 5am would be imposed during the lockdown, Roque said.
Photo: Reuters
“Our health care utilization rate has reached a critical level in NCR and nearby provinces,” Roque said. “We really want to take drastic measures because the rise in cases has been drastic because of these new variants. Drastic threats warrant drastic response.”
The stay-at-home order would have minimal economic impact as it coincides with a long Easter weekend where offices and financial markets are shut today and tomorrow, Roque said.
The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) would stick to the shortened trading hours implemented in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, PSE president Ramon Monzon said yesterday.
Bonds, foreign currency and swap trading hours would be unchanged from Dec. 1 when the Bankers Association of the Philippines went back to the pre-pandemic schedule, PSE managing director Benjamin Castillo said.
The government had tightened mobility in the capital and the surrounding provinces for two weeks from Monday last week, but cases continued to spike, hitting a record 9,808 on Friday.
Another 9,595 infections were added on Saturday, taking the total to 712,442. Daily infections have risen more than five times from the start of the year, while the percentage of people testing positive for COVID-19 rose to 16 percent last week from about 7 percent in January.
The Philippines, which implemented one of the world’s strictest and longest lockdowns last year, had its worst-ever recession, prompting economic managers to push for a sustained reopening and targeted restrictions rather than a hard lockdown. GDP shrank 9.5 percent last year, and the contraction is expected to persist this quarter.
The week-long lockdown will likely cut less than 1 percent from total economic output and can be offset by the impact of the corporate income tax cut signed into law on Friday, Michael Ricafort, an economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp, wrote in a note yesterday.
Infections are rising globally even as countries ramp up vaccinations amid efforts to reopen economies and revive social activities.
In the Philippines, fewer than one-third of the 1.7 million health workers had been inoculated as of Tuesday, while the country has received more than 1.1 million vaccine doses.
About 2 million more from AstraZeneca and Sinovac Biotech are expected to arrive in the coming weeks.
Similar to the strict lockdown imposed a year ago, residents in areas affected must work from home if they are able, may only leave for essentials and are barred from holding mass gatherings. Hospitals and health emergency services, manufacturers of medical supplies, farms, and delivery of food and medicine are allowed to operate as usual.
Malls would be shut, except for tenants such as pharmacies, hardware stores, supermarkets, and businesses engaged in food delivery and takeout.
Businesses trading in other essential goods and services, including media establishments, can operate at up to 50 percent capacity, while industries including capital markets, finance, telecommunications and airlines are among those that must operate with a skeletal workforce.
Public transport including trains would be allowed to run at limited capacity while priority construction projects can continue. The capital region, with a population of about 13 million, accounts for nearly half of the nation’s total virus cases.
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