Worried About the Economy? Don’t Worry, It Can’t Get Any Worse Than This
It looks like we might have overcome the worst of this economic crisis.
According to Benjamin Diokno, governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), it’s “unlikely” that the economy will get any worse in 2021.
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In an interview with TeleRadyo, Diokno assuaged fears that the economy would worsen next year after a Social Weather Station survey relayed that 40 percent of Filipinos are worried that the economy will get even worse over the course of the next 12 months.
“Unlikely na magiging worse pa yan compared halimbawa sa na-experience natin nung second quarter,” said Diokno. “Kaya nga we’re optimistic na by the third quarter may kaunting activity na tayo, 4th quarter mas maganda."
He went on to explain that the SWS surveys are “perception surveys,” and despite the public worry, he doesn’t believe that Filipinos will face the same economic hardships in 2021 compared to the strict lockdown during April and May in 2020.
The Philippine economy is currently in a recession after the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the GDP of Q2 declined by a whopping 16.5 percent, the lowest rate ever recorded in the Philippines based on available economic data.
Despite this, Diokno is firm in his belief that 2021 will fare much better than 2020, noting that 2021 will be the year the economy will regain its footing to make up for the losses in 2020. He went on to forecast that 2022 will be the year of real growth, when the Philippine economy will be back on track.
“Yung bounce natin next year ay to make up for the contraction this year. Hindi totoo yun na mas malalala yun next year. Yun yung mismong forecast by NEDA (National Economic Development Authority) that we will grow by about seven percent next year,” concluded Diokno.
