(File photo) MANILA- A lawmaker on Friday urged economic managers to seriously consider expanding the various subsidy programs for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to help them recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Marikina City Rep. Stella Quimbo said programs such as the Department of Trade and Industry's Livelihood Seeding Program - Negosyo Serbisyo Sa Barangay (LSP-NSB) could help get small businesses restarted, and for them to eventually muster "enough confidence" to avail of the expanded loan programs. "Subsidies are especially important today, with the series of oil price hikes," Quimbo said. She pointed out the risk aversion of MSMEs to loans, as the percentage of MSME loans to total loans in 2020 and the first semester of 2021 were both 7.6 percent, which is lower than pre-pandemic rates of 8.8 percent in 2019, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas data. Quimbo cited the Commission on Audit (COA) report dated March 2, 2022