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Vendors wait for buyers at the Quinta Market in Manila as roads leading to Quiapo Church remain closed following the suspension of physical Masses and procession for the 2022 commemoration of the annual Traslacion, on January 9, 2022. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File
MANILA - Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said Thursday he is confident the country could still achieve its growth target of 7 to 9 percent this year despite the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.
The new omicron variant appears to be "mild and less lethal" and the outbreak occurred early in the year, Diokno said in an event organized by the Management Association of the Philippines.
On Thursday, the Philippines reported its highest daily confirmed infections of 34,021.
Diokno also assured top business executives that the country's banking system remains sound and capable of withstanding the prevailing challenges brought about by the pandemic as well as inflation and shifting international monetary policies.
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The country has adequate cash buffers for external shocks, manageable bad debt levels, slowing inflation and rising bank lending, he said.
Total gross international reserves (GIR) level, for example, rose to $108.8 billion as of the end of December, equivalent to 10.3 months worth of import of goods and services and 8.8 times the country's short term external debt, BSP data showed.
Meanwhile, MAP president Alfredo Pascual said the current surge "threatens to set back" the country's recovery.
"Any increase in mobility restrictions can cause undue hardship once more for the business sector and the workers who could lose their jobs," Pascual said.
"COVID infection concerns of customers and workers alike have affected businesses adversely, and many companies have closed down and gone bankrupt," he added.
He said the expected unemployment range for 2022 is between 7 to 9 percent or 3 times the pre-pandemic level of 2.2 percent in 2019.
Metro Manila and other neighboring provinces are under Alert Level 3 due to the rising COVID-19 cases.
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