Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 18) — Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez has once again tested positive for COVID-19, he confirmed Thursday.
In a text message to CNN Philippines, the official said he is currently in isolation. He also hopes the test is a false positive, as he is asymptomatic.
He first contracted the contagious disease in December last year.
Lopez, a member of the administration’s economic team, has consistently called for further easing of quarantine restrictions and allowing more businesses to operate to help revive the ailing economy.
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The Philippine economy remains in recession, logging a -9.5% full-year growth in 2020. This is the sharpest plunge recorded since the government began collating data on annual growth rates in 1946.
