CEBU’S exports fell 6.14 percent in the first four months of 2020 as demand in most of its major markets plunged amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Shipments that went out of the Cebu International Port (CIP) from January to April totaled US$62.041 million, down $4.057 million from $66.099 million in the same period last year.
“There you go, a grim scenario has just surfaced. This is the effect of the April lockdown on Cebu exports which started around the end of March due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” Philippine Exporters Confederation in Cebu executive director Fred Escalona said.
An enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) has been imposed in Cebu since March 28 to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak, triggering widespread business closures. Cebu City, along with Metro Manila and Laguna province continue to be under ECQ until May 31, but the guidelines will be modified to allow some industries to resume operations at a limited capacity, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Tuesday, May 12. But, local government units have until May 13 to appeal their classification before the Inter-Agency Task Force. The modified ECQ will take effect on May 16, after the current ECQ ends on May 15.
The overall weakness in trade is the latest economic blow for Cebu as the spread of the novel coronavirus has seen the global economy grind to a halt.
Container traffic at CIP also dropped. The Cebu main port processed a total of 1,960 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEUs) during the four-month period, down by 626 TEUs from 2,586 last year.
In terms of gross weight, shipments from Cebu also declined to 22.73 million metric tons (MT) during the period, from 32.28 million MT last year.
Cancellation of orders
“Aside from the lockdown, which resulted from the implementation of ECQs in different cities, a global trade slowdown ended in cancellations of orders from our trading partners due to Covid-19,” Escalona told SunStar Cebu.
Cebu’s merchandise export performance will likely remain weak in the near term amid forecasts the global economy is facing its worst recession in decades this year.
Cebu’s traditional exports include furniture, dried mango, industrial goods, accessories and processed food, among others.
Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said trade activity may recover in 2021 but this will depend on how fast we can contain the spread of Covid-19 and mitigate its economic impact through government policies to support affected industries and workers.
In March alone, the Philippines’ total merchandise trade dropped to $11.44 billion—its lowest level in two years. This was 25.7 percent lower than the $15.40 billion recorded in the same month in the previous year. Both exports and imports registered declines of 24.9 percent and 26.2 percent, respectively.