The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) granted a P100-million revolving credit line to Centro Manufacturing Corporation (CMC) to finance its assembly of truck bodies, automotive parts and accessories.
The loan will support the production of 3,000 units of various types of trucks and utility vans, with 21 percent, or 630 units, allotted for public utility vehicles (PUVs) in support of the National Government’s PUV Modernization Program, DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel G. Herbosa announced on March 30.
“As the country’s premiere infrastructure bank, DBP prioritizes support to initiatives to develop our transport systems and supply chains,” he explained. “Economic growth and global competitiveness rests on building of networks all over the country."
CMC builds truck bodies and provides truck-related equipment and services to local automotive companies and brands, including Toyota, Mitsubishi, Nissan, among others.
The company, the only ISO-certified truck body builder in the country, has manufacturing facilities in Novaliches, Cavite, and Bulacan.
Funding the transport sector will hasten economic recovery, facilitating the movement of people, basic commodities and other goods, stressed DBP Executive Vice President Jose Gabino D. Dimayuga.
The public transport sector caters to daily wage workers of micro, small and medium enterprises which employ 66.2 percent of the national workforce, he pointed out.
For this reason, DBP prioritizes the financing of public transport systems as a key to expansion and growth, according to Dimayuga.