April 18, 2022
‘Next Philippine leader must strengthen West Philippine Sea policy’
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Rainier Allan Ronda
The next Philippine leader must craft a responsive and strategic foreign policy to reverse the losses caused by the lackadaisical policy of the current administration, according to think tank Stratbase-Albert Del Rosario Institute (Stratbase-ADRI)...
Faster rollout of booster shots urged amid new coronavirus variants
BusinessWorld, April 18, 2022
Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
and Luz Wendy T. Noble, Reporters
The distribution of booster doses of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines should be accelerated in order to prevent new variants from driving another surge that may derail economic recovery, experts said...
RCEP delay deals ‘openness’ blow
Daily Tribune, April 18, 2022
Maria Romero
Businesses may suffer if the government delays the country’s participation in the free trade agreement under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)...
2nd COVID-19 booster set for an initial batch of 1.8M
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 18, 2022
Dona Z. Pazzibugan
Health authorities aim to roll out this week the second COVID-19 booster shot for an initial batch of 1.8 million healthcare workers, elderly and immunocompromised patients...
DTI bats anew for RCEP ratification
The Manila Times, April 18, 2022
Rainier Allan Ronda
The Philippines cannot afford to delay its participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said...
BSP to tweak rules on large exposures
BusinessWorld, April 18, 2022
Luz Wendy T. Noble
The Philippine central bank is proposing to amend the guidelines on large exposures for big banks and their subsidiaries, in an effort to improve credit concentration risk management...
Banks need to keep close eye on play-to-earn game transactions, AMLC says
BusinessWorld, April 18, 2022
Luz Wendy T. Noble
The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) wants financial institutions to ensure customer due diligence, especially those that serve as payment channels for play-to-earn games such as Axie Infinity...
New management rules issued for marine protected areas
BusinessWorld, April 17, 2022
Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson
Three departments signed on to a joint memorandum circular outlining new rules for managing marine protected area networks (MPANs), restore damaged coastal ecosystems, and preserve marine habitats, including coral reefs...
Public schools can’t require vaccination vs COVID for student registration
BusinessWorld, April 17, 2022
Alyssa Nicole O. Tan
Unvaccinated learners should not be turned away by public schools as the country has started to partially shift back to in-person classes and registration is underway for the next school year, a local government official and senatorial aspirant said...
MSME learning platform upgraded
The Manila Times, April 18, 2022
More micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) can take advantage of the upgraded version of an online learning platform to develop their digital skills to keep their businesses afloat and accelerate recoveries from the coronavirus pandemic...
Russia-Ukraine war to drag on Philippine export
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Louise Maureen Simeon
The continued tension between Ukraine and Russia will likely put a dent on Philippine exports as well as in many other Asia-Pacific economies...
Policies needed to boost manufacturing
The Manila Times, April 18, 2022
Faye Almazan
A recent study on Asian manufacturing productivity highlights the importance of implementing policies to allow manufacturers to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic...
Chinese vessel shadows two survey ships hired by PH firm
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 18, 2022
Frances Mangosing
A China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel tailed two ships hired by a Philippine-based firm to do a seismic survey in the West Philippine Sea earlier this month, Vietnamese maritime observer Duan Dang wrote last week in his newsletter South China Sea Brief...
OFWs in lockdown Shanghai seek help, Consulate also locked in
BusinessMirror, April 17, 2022
Malou Talosig-Bartolome
Filipino workers in Shanghai are seeking help from the draconian measures of the Chinese government in implementing a citywide lockdown in China’s major financial hub...
Biden to host Southeast Asian leaders in Washington next month
BusinessWorld, April 17, 2022
Bloomberg
President Joseph R. Biden will host leaders of ASEAN countries on May 12-13 in Washington, signaling US efforts to engage with the group in the competition with China for regional influence...
‘Easter of war’: Pope implicitly criticizes Russia over Ukraine
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 17, 2022
Reuters
Pope Francis implicitly criticized Russia for dragging Ukraine into a “cruel and senseless” conflict and urged leaders to strive for peace as he marked what he called an “Easter of war” on Sunday...
Ukraine vows to fight to the end in Mariupol as ultimatum expires
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Daphne Rousseau
Ukraine on Sunday vowed to fight to the end in Mariupol after a Russian ultimatum expired for remaining forces to surrender in the Black Sea port city where Moscow is pushing for a major strategic victory...
Russians flee Putin regime to join Ukraine refugees in Israel
The Manila Times, April 17, 2022
Agence France-Presse
The moment Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine, Russian filmmakers Anna Shishova-Bogolyubova and Dmitry Bogolyubov knew they had to leave Moscow...
Thai gov’t says Ramadan bombings won’t derail peace talks with rebels
Philippine Star, April 17, 2022
Reuters
Ramadan bombings in Thailand’s Muslim-majority deep south will not derail peace talks with separatist rebels, the government said on Sunday, April 17, after a sidelined insurgent group claimed responsibility for the attacks...
Israel government faces new split amid Jerusalem violence
ABS-CBN News, April 18, 2022
Paul Raymond, Agence France-Presse
Israel's fractious governing coalition faced a new split on Sunday when Arab-Israeli party Raam "suspended" its membership, after violence around a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site that wounded 170 people over the weekend...
Pope Francis calls for free access to Jerusalem holy sites
Philippine Star, April 17, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Pope Francis on Sunday called for free access to the holy sites in Jerusalem as he delivered his annual Easter address amid simmering violence between Israelis and Palestinians in the Holy City...
Shanghai targets lockdown turning point by Wednesday —sources
GMA News, April 18, 2022
Shanghai has set a target to stop the spread of COVID-19 outside of quarantined areas by Wednesday, two people familiar with the matter said, which would allow the city to further ease its lockdown and start returning to normal life as public frustrations grow...
Shelling kills 18, injures scores in Kharkiv, Ukraine in past four days —Zelensky
GMA News, April 18, 2022
Oleksandr Kozhukar, Reuters
Eighteen people have been killed and more than 100 wounded in shelling in the past four days in the northeast Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said late on Sunday...
Ukrainian soldiers hold out in Mariupol
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 17, 2022
Reuters
Ukrainian soldiers resisted a Russian ultimatum to lay down arms on Sunday in the pulverized port of Mariupol, which Moscow said its forces had almost completely seized in what would be its biggest prize of the nearly two-month war...
Israel to top up shrinking of Sea of Galilee with desalinated water
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 17, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Israel, a leader in making seawater drinkable, plans to pump excess output from its desalination plants into the Sea of Galilee, depleted by overuse and threatened by climate change...
Russian ultimatum to Ukraine forces in Mariupol expires
The Manila Times, April 17, 2022
Agence France-Presse
A Russian ultimatum for the last remaining Ukrainian forces in Mariupol to surrender expires on Sunday, with Moscow poised for a major strategic victory in the southeastern port city...
'We all realize that we will not be forgiven.' Ukraine braces for new assault after sinking of Russian flagship
CNN Philippines, April 17, 2022
Ivana Kottasová, CNN
The war in Ukraine could soon enter a new, even more dangerous phase. Russia, angry over the loss of its Black Sea Fleet flagship, has warned of "unpredictable consequences" if the US continues supplying weapons to Ukraine, while Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky struck a somber note telling CNN the world should be prepared for the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin could use tactical nuclear weapons...
Ukraine's richest man vows to rebuild besieged Mariupol
CNN Philippines, April 17, 2022
Reuters
Ukraine's richest man has pledged to help rebuild the besieged city of Mariupol, a place close to his heart where he owns two vast steelworks that he says will once again compete globally. Rinat Akhmetov has seen his business empire shattered by eight years of fighting in Ukraine's east but remains defiant, sure that what he calls "our brave soldiers" will defend the Sea of Azov city reduced to a wasteland by seven weeks of bombardment...
Developers anticipate greater LGU dev’t role
Daily Tribune, April 18, 2022
Raffy Ayeng
Competency shown by local government units such as cities and municipalities in asessing subdivision development projects over the last 29 years inspires confidence in the LGU’s ability to implement national government programs being devolved as a result of the Mandanas-Garcia ruling of the Supreme Court...
Comelec: 15 posts offer mobile voting to overseas Filipinos
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Evelyn Macairan
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said at least 15 Philippine posts abroad are offering mobile voting for overseas Filipino voters...
Nazarene parade canceled due to ‘unruly’ devotees
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Marc Jayson Cayabyab
The procession of the Black Nazarene was canceled on Friday because of an “unruly” crowd of devotees wanting to see the wooden image two years into the pandemic...
'Voters unlikely to change candidates'
The Manila Times, April 18, 2022
Kaithreen Cruz
A majority of respondents in the recent Publicus survey said that they were unlikely to change their choice for president in the upcoming elections...
Agaton death toll rises to 172; estimated damage to agri, infra at P256.7M
Manila Standard, April 18, 2022
Maricel Cruz
A total 172 people, 156 of whom from Eastern Visayas, have died from landslides and massive flooding caused by tropical storm Agaton, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Sunday...
Several presidential bets: No backing out of 2022 race
Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 17, 2022
Daniza Fernandez
Four presidential candidates on Easter Sunday declared that they will push through with their respective candidacies. Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, in a joint press conference announced that he, Senators Manny Pacquiao and Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, and former Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales will finish the presidential race...
Economist flags possibility of close vote, electoral protest
BusinessWorld, April 17, 2022
Tobias Jared Tomas
The prospect of a closer Presidential vote is looming based on momentum indicated by the March surveys, raising the possibility of a contested outcome that could lead to a repeat of the 2016 electoral protest, a GlobalSource Partners economist said...
Foreign borrowing still seen as ‘prudent’ despite major expansion in gov’t debt
BusinessWorld, April 17, 2022
Tobias Jared Tomas
Government borrowing remains “prudent” despite the significant increase in the public debt, a bank economist said, adding that much of the borrowing taken on in the last two years was necessary to help manage the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic...
Indicators reveal strong fundamentals
Daily Tribune, April 18, 2022
Raadee Sausa
Rapid increases in capital formation and foreign direct investments (FDI), particularly for those sectors not seeking fiscal incentives, when combined, imply investors are being attracted by favorable economic fundamentals, a key official of the Department of Finace (DoF) said...
PH rice stocks down in February
The Manila Times, April 18, 2022
Anna Leah E. Gonzales
The country's rice stocks inventory dropped by 26.6 percent to 1.60 million metric tons (MT) at the start of February as compared to 2.19 million MT in the same month last year, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed. ...
Keep trade open to support vulnerable economies
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Louise Maureen Simeon
All countries are urged to keep their trade open to support vulnerable economies, especially net-importing ones that are bearing the brunt of rising commodity prices due to the Russia-Ukraine war...
Market may regain footing at 7,000 mark
Philippine Star, April 18, 2022
Iris Gonzales
After a shortened trading week, the stock market may look for better footing near the 7,000 mark...
PH to lose investors over trade deal delay
Manila Standard, April 17, 2022
Othel V. Campos
Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez expressed concern that the country may lose investment opportunities to competitor countries over the delayed congressional approval of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership...
Meralco’s power sales climbed 6% in Q1
Manila Standard, April 17, 2022
Alena Mae S. Flores
Electricity sales of Manila Electric Co., the biggest power retailer, rose nearly 6 percent in the first quarter from a year ago as the Philippines eased mobility restrictions in Metro Manila and other regions...