While income remains difficult to come by amid challenging economic conditions, consumers are being warned against indulging in “nonsense shopping” that could push them deeper into debt.
Donald Lim, president of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), issued the warning as he observed how online shopping platforms entice Filipinos to spend by offering loans and various payment schemes for items sold at seemingly low prices.
“In business we want consumers to increase. I also don’t want them to be in debt. There’s a lot of debt. Those apps are increasing, even in corporate,” Lim said during a media interview after the MAP General Membership Meeting.
Lim first cited the growing prevalence of online shopping among Filipinos, particularly through popular shopping platforms.
He said consumers are then encouraged to pay for their purchases using credit or other forms of debt.
“They are in debt from one app to the second app to the third app and now they’re being chased by their friends,” he said. “There’s a lot of debt. Even in the office. If you’re in debt it’s because … it’s cheap. If it’s cheap, you’ll run out of money,” he said.
“That’s why for me personally I don’t want to train consumers to keep spending nonsense,” he said.
Lim said there is nothing wrong with spending on a good meal to bring the family together, emphasizing that such experiences cannot be replaced. What he finds problematic is “consumerizing everything,” which he said is not good for consumers.
“It will help business but you’ll end up with not only the country now in debt but also personally all of them.
You bring them down. You don’t want your economic class to go down because they’re in debt,” he added.
For instance, Lim said an individual with PHP50,000 in debt who is being pressured to pay is likely already struggling financially. As household debt continues to pile up, businesses are also eventually affected by weaker consumer spending.
“I’m scared that a lot of our Filipinos might be in hat state because it’s sudden that they’re losing spending,” he added.
Weak consumer demand is largely attributed to stagnant or declining incomes, with construction activity also slowing amid weaker government spending following investigations into alleged ghost flood-control projects involving billions of pesos.
The latest report from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that Philippine gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed to 2.3 percent in the second quarter of 2026 from 2.8 percent in the first quarter, bringing average first-half growth to 2.6 percent.
The slower GDP growth was attributed to weak public construction, declining investments, and elevated inflation.
