THE Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport) noted strong export activities to economic powerhouses of Japan and the United States after the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019 n-CoV) hit China, the world’s biggest supplier.
Philexport Cebu executive director Fred Escalona told SunStar Cebu they started noting the increase of Philippine exports to these destinations on the second week of January as the global economy grappled with the disruptions of exports from China.
“The exports were strong. Food products for Japan and even furniture for the US grew. We have yet to consolidate the figures but it has been growing,” he said.
Escalona noted a sustained growth of food exports and electronics that were supposed to have been supplied by China.
“The Philippines became an option for other countries to supply their goods. If they are not taking orders from China, they have to go to other sources,” he said.
In terms of production, he said the Philippines can deliver when there is demand.
Escalona saw this as the other countries’ way of tapping new sources aside from China.
“This is aside from the fact that there there are still ongoing tariff problems between China and the US,” he said.
On Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia signed Executive Order (EO) 5-A prohibiting cargo vessels from China and any of its Special Adminsitrative Regions from docking in any seaport within the province unless its crew members are assessed for symptoms of the 2019 n-CoV acute respiratory disease.
The cargo vessel has to be cleared by the Quarantine Team before it will be allowed to dock and unload the cargoes.
Escalona said the products that will be most affected because of this EO will be the perishable goods or food products with short shelf lives and fresh fruits.
“Frozen food products will also be affected if the delays persist,” he said.
While they support this measure, Escalona said they are worried of the imported materials sourced from China.
“If you say that there will be a total ban of ships from China, then our imports will really be affected. There will be a disruption of trade,” he said.
The 2019-nCoV outbreak, which originated from the city of Wuhan, has affected both trade and tourism business not only in Asia. There are currently 31,400 confirmed cases and 636 deaths from the 2019-nCoV outbreak worldwide as of Friday, Feb. 7, 2020. (JOB)