The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) warned of a possible slowdown in trade due to the combined effects of the global downtrend and the logistics disruptions caused by the novel coronavirus (nCoV).
DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez noted the need for trade to continue in the wake of the “confusion” caused by an order the other day of the Bureau of Quarantine that held a cargo vessel from China at a Manila port.
The order, which was to put all cargoes from China and its special administrative regions (SARs) on a 14-day quarantine, has since been rescinded.
With the lifting of the order, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) now allows cargo ships originating from China and its SARs as well as Taiwan to enter Philippine ports.
Vessel crews of these ships as well as tourists in cruise ships are not allowed to disembark in Philippine territories.
Lopez said Philippine exports would take a temporary hit from the nCoV crisis only to the point of supply chain issues.
“If at all, there’ll be a delay in delivery… a slowdown from their source; we hope this does not last long so that our worry that the supply chain might be broken will be short,” Lopez said.
He added government should ensure free flow of goods or “trade will … (be disrupted) unnecessarily.”
On the flipside, Lopez said local manufacturers have started looking for other sources of inputs even as inventory levels remain healthy.
This is to ensure they are able to fulfill export orders.
Companies with operations in China are looking for other sources of inputs such as those in automotive parts and appliance components. This presents an opportunity for the country.
A news report last week said one supplier of Honda Cars has decided to shift some of its pedal production to the Philippines from Wuhan.
Meanwhile, PPA said 83 percent of all cargo to the Philippines are from China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan with 29 ship arrivals a week. Bulk of cargoes in the Philippines come from China where cargoes from US, Middle East and Europe are also pass through.
“We are business as usual (cargo shipment), there is no quarantine (for cargo ships),” said Jay Daniel Santiago, PPA general manager.
Santiago added: “We cannot afford to ban the entry of international ships to our shores in the midst of this nCoV scare as doing so will surely paralyze our supply chain as most of our imports and exports go to the hub ports located in China and its SARs.
He said crew members of vessels which have made port calls to China or any of its SARs within the 14-day period prior to arrival to any Philippine port are not allowed to disembark.
He said no visitors are allowed within such period in order to minimize person-to-person interaction with the crew.
Cargo traffic volume in the country grew by 4 percent in the first half of 2019 driven by surged on foreign trade.
PPA data showed total cargo throughput reached 129 million metric tons (MMT) in the first half of 2019 higher from 124 MMTs in the same period of the year.
