April 13, 2022
Philippines among strongest economic in ASEAN +3
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Louise Maureen Simeon
The Philippines is expected to post the strongest economic performance, alongside Vietnam, in the ASEAN+3 region this year, but growth will still likely fall short of government targets as inflation risks remain...
PHL growth forecast upgraded despite risks
BusinessWorld, April 13, 2022
Tobias Jared Tomas and Abigail Marie P. Yraola, Researcher
The Philippine economy is expected to grow above 6% this year, according to revised estimates by the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO) and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) released on Tuesday...
FDI drops for 1st time in 8 months
BusinessWorld, April 13, 2022
Luz Wendy T. Noble
Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows declined for the first time in eight months in January, as the Omicron-driven surge in coronavirus infections and tighter restrictions dampened investor sentiment...
NCR remains under Alert Level 1 until end of April
CNN Philippines, April 13, 2022
CNN Philippines Staff
The National Capital Region will remain under the lowest alert level status from April 16 to 30, Malacañang announced on Wednesday. The Inter-Agency Task Force also placed the following provinces under Alert Level 1 in the same period...
DICT expediting approvals for delivery service entrants
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
Arjay L. Balinbin
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said it is taking steps to expedite applications for new entrants for the express delivery or messengerial services industry...
Returning Pinoys need not fill out arrival cards — BI
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
John Victor D. Ordoñez
Filipinos returning to the country would no longer be required to fill out arrival cards at airports, according to the Bureau of Immigration (BI)...
DMW panel questions Mama-o’s ‘irregular’ IRR
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Mayen Jaymalin
The Department of Migrant Workers transition committee is asking President Duterte to nullify what it described as an “irregular” set of implementing rules and regulations (IRR) issued by DMW Secretary Abdulla Mama-o...
Philippines raises $559M via Samurai bond deal
BusinessWorld, April 13, 2022
Reuters
The Philippines has raised 70.1 billion yen ($559 million) from an offering of four-tranche Samurai bonds, fixed-income news provider IFR reported on Tuesday...
Google tightens approval of lending apps, says SEC
BusinessWorld, April 13, 2022
Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson
Google is adopting a more stringent approval process for online lending applications in the Philippines, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said in a media release on Tuesday...
BoI in talks with US potential investors in hyperscale datacenter, RE projects
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
Ram Christian S. Agustin
The Board of Investments (BoI) said it recently conducted discussions with US infrastructure company Diode Ventures and engineering firm ENDECGROUP, Inc. regarding their interest in investing in Philippine projects...
Oxfam says 263 million more face extreme poverty
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
Bloomberg
The impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), rising global inequality and soaring food prices caused by the war in Ukraine are set to send more than a quarter-billion more people into poverty this year, according to charity group Oxfam International...
UNESCAP: PHL to grow past 6% in 2022, 2023 as recovery gains
BusinessMirror, April 12, 2022
Cai Ordinario
The Philippine economy is projected to grow above 6 percent as the regional and global economies continue to recover, according to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Unescap)...
FDIs down 16% to $819 million in January
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Lawrence Agcaoili
After hitting an all-time high last year, the net inflow of foreign direct investments (FDI) declined by 16 percent to $819 million in January from $975 million in the same period last year as the National Capital Region (NCR) and nearby provinces were placed anew under Alert Level 3 amid the resurgence in COVID cases due to the highly transmissible Omicron variant...
Duterte: Russia's invasion of Ukraine deserves 'condemnation'
The Manila Times, April 12, 2022
Catherine S. Valente
Russia's invasion of Ukraine "deserves the condemnation," President Rodrigo Duterte said on Tuesday, describing the ongoing armed conflict as "so brutal"...
DoE, WB eye wind roadmap
Daily Tribune, April 13, 2022
Maria Romero
The Department of Energy (DoE) and the World Bank Group (WB) will launch the country’s first-ever Offshore Wind Roadmap on 20 April...
War in Ukraine could halve 2022 global trade growth – WTO
The Manila Times, April 12, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Russia's war in Ukraine could almost halve world trade growth this year and drag down global GDP growth too, the World Trade Organization projected Monday...
Taipei wakes to warplanes overhead as military drill simulates PLA attack
ABS-CBN News, April 13, 2022
Lawrence Chung, South China Morning Post
Taiwan's military sent warplanes into the island's capital early on Tuesday in a drill simulating an air attack by the People's Liberation Army, while a survival handbook was released telling citizens what to do in the event of a bombardment...
Biden taps ethanol to help lower fuel prices as consumer inflation surges
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 13, 2022
Reuters
U.S. President Joe Biden unveiled plans on Tuesday to extend the availability of higher biofuel blends of gasoline during the summer to curb soaring fuel costs and to cut reliance on foreign energy sources...
Biden accuses Russia of genocide in Ukraine
Rappler, April 13, 2022
Reuters
US President Joe Biden said for the first time on Tuesday, April 12, that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine amounts to genocide then qualified the statement by saying that a legal process would make the final determination...
US has 'credible' info Russia may use 'chemical agents' in Ukraine: Blinken
ABS-CBN News, April 13, 2022
Agence France-Presse
The United States has "credible information" that Russia "may use... chemical agents" in its offensive to take the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday...
Greece speeds up gas exploration to help reduce Russia reliance
Rappler, April 12, 2022
Reuters
Greece will speed up gas exploration as it looks to cut its reliance on Russian energy, aiming at its first test drilling in more than two decades by the end of 2023, the prime minister said on Tuesday, April 12...
Shanghai locals sleep at work and ration food as lockdown bites
ABS-CBN News, April 13, 2022
Vivian Lin, Agence France-Presse
By day it's Romeo's workplace, by night it's his home. Like many other finance sector workers in Shanghai, he has moved into the office to keep the wheels of commerce turning during a harsh Covid lockdown of the megacity...
Washington says human rights 'backsliding' worldwide
GMA News, April 13, 2022
Human rights are still in decline around the world, as shown by the war in Ukraine, the US government said Tuesday...
Meningitis vaccine protects against gonorrhea —studies
GMA News, April 13, 2022
An existing meningitis vaccine offers protection against gonorrhea, three studies said on Thursday, pointing towards a new way to fight the spread of the sexually transmitted disease...
Nearly 86% of US COVID-19 caused by BA.2 Omicron subvariant — CDC
GMA News, April 13, 2022
Bhanvi Satija, Reuters
The BA.2 Omicron subvariant of the coronavirus is now responsible for 86% of US COVID-19 cases and more than 90% of infections in the Northeast, according to data on Tuesday from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)...
Russia has defaulted on its foreign debt, says S&P
CNN Philippines, April 12, 2022
Anna Cooban, CNN Business
Russia has defaulted on its foreign debt because it offered bondholders payments in rubles, not dollars, credit ratings agency S&P has said...
Going green and all in for a more sustainable future
The Manila Times, April 13, 2022
Chris Ferareza
As early as 30 years ago, businesses had to make a tough choice: prioritize profit or save the planet. Focusing on environmental initiatives was expensive even back then. The costs for going green were steep and corporations saw little returns in such a scenario. This pushed them to question whether adopting environmentally friendly practices posed a win-win situation...
Duterte warns against COVID-19 resurgence
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Alexis Romero
President Duterte has warned the public of a possible resurgence in COVID-19 infections driven by religious and political gatherings, noting that the Philippines is “not yet out of the woods” even if it remains at minimal risk...
NBI raids Smartmatic employee’s house
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Marc Jayson Cayabyab
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) raided on Sunday the house of a Smartmatic employee who allegedly stole a laptop of the country’s automated elections service provider and is a suspect in the company’s security breach...
Sotto names agri 'smugglers'
The Manila Times, April 13, 2022
Bernadette E. Tamayo
Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto 3rd on Tuesday identified four traders or "players" allegedly involved in agricultural and fishery smuggling...
Concepcion to Pinoys: Get boosters, save 80M doses
The Manila Times, April 13, 2022
Catherine S. Valente
Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Maria "Joey" Concepcion 3rd on Tuesday urged Filipinos to get their booster shots to save around 80 million doses Covid-19 vaccines...
Duterte still ‘most trusted’
Daily Tribune, April 13, 2022
TDT
Malacañang expressed elation on Tuesday that President Rodrigo Duterte emerged as the “most approved” and “most trusted” government official even with only over two months left before he steps down...
Comelec probes spoiled ballot incidents abroad
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 13, 2022
Donna Z. Pazzibugan and Marlon Ramos
After initially dismissing reports about pre-shaded ballots that emerged as the monthlong overseas voting began on April 10, Election Commissioner George Garcia said he would find out why a supposed spoiled ballot was mixed with the official ballots for overseas voters in Singapore...
MMDA eyes new coding scheme for private cars only
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 13, 2022
Nestor Corrales
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has proposed a new number coding scheme that will reduce the volume of vehicles on Edsa and other major Metro Manila roads by 40 percent...
PSA: Deaths and marriages up, births down in 2021
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 12, 2022
Ben O. de Vera
Amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, deaths in the Philippines jumped by nearly two-fifths to 853,074 in 2021, not only due to the increase in coronavirus infections but also to less attention on other deadly diseases...
Senate flags lack of successful prosecutions for smuggling
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
Alyssa Nicole O. Tan
No major smuggling cases have been prosecuted successfully since 2016, Senators said at a committee hearing, which was told that more than 20 major smuggling operations are currently active...
Dengue cases rising in Zamboanga 3 regions
Philippine Star, April 13, 2022
Sheila Crisostomo
Aside from Zamboanga City, an increase in dengue cases has been observed in some provinces in Cagayan Valley, Western Visayas and Davao, according to the Department of Health (DOH)...
PHL embassy opens space for voters opting to fill up ballots on-the-spot despite mail-in system
BusinessMirror, April 12, 2022
Malou Talosig-Bartolome
The Philippine Embassy in Rome has received clearance from the DFA-Overseas Voting Secretariat to open the Embassy premises for OFW registered voters who wish to fill up and return their ballots on the same day to the diplomatic post, despite a system of mail-in ballots for that area...
DOF anti-corruption arm
probed 468 employees
BusinessMirror, April 12, 2022
Bernadette D. Nicolas
The Department of Finance announced 468 of its 3,000 employees were investigated in the past five years by the DOF’s anti-corruption unit based on various complaints and for lifestyle-check...
Neda adds 3 gov’t programs in pitch for tax-free donations
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 12, 2022
Ben O. de Vera
The state planning agency National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) has added three more government programs in the list of its priorities wherein donors enjoyed tax-exemption...
Comelec eyes to prosecute individuals spreading fake news about exit polls
CNN Philippines, April 12, 2022
CNN Philippines Staff
The Commission on Elections is planning to go after individuals who are responsible for spreading results of unreliable exit polls...
Policy rate seen at 3.25%
The Manila Times, April 13, 2022
Mayvelin U. Caraballo
The Philippines' average inflation rate in 2022 is likely to exceed the government's target, prompting the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to raise its ultra-low policy rate to 3.25 percent by the end of the year, an Australia-based research firm said...
FMCG players urged to level up digitally
The Manila Times, April 13, 2022
Anna Leah E. Gonzales
Local and regional fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) players must level up their e-commerce capabilities and transition from the brick-and-mortar world to online retail to meet consumer demand, e-commerce enabler etaily said...
Inflation seen hovering at 4.1%
Daily Tribune, April 13, 2022
Raadee Sausa
Inflation this year is expected to exceed the government’s target range, a report said...
Philippine RE capacity up 9% in 2021, in line with global growth
BusinessWorld, April 12, 2022
Ram Christian S. Agustin
Renewable energy ENERGY (RE) capacity in the Philippines grew 9% in 2021, roughly in line with the pace of global growth, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said in a report...
Digital banks to support
economic recovery–BSP
BusinessMirror, April 12, 2022
Bianca Cuaresma
Digital banks are expected to support economic recovery this year, through increased financial accessibility among micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said on Tuesday...
Initial DA report shows P265.3-million damage to crops in Eastern Visayas, Caraga
BusinessMirror, April 12, 2022
Jasper Y. Arcalas
Over 2,000 farmers in Eastern Visayas and Caraga lost P265.3 million after Typhoon Agaton damaged various crops in the two regions, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said Tuesday...