June 6, 2022
EDITORIAL - Only one Earth
Source Philippine Star
PH climbs to 33rd spot in COVID management
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Tina G. Santos
The Philippines has climbed to the 33rd spot in Nikkei Asia’s latest COVID-19 Recovery Index, which ranks over 120 countries based on infection management, vaccine rollouts, and social mobility...
May inflation pegged at over 5% on rising food prices
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Ronnel W. Domingo
Rising prices of food are expected to put the greatest upward pressure on inflation, even as the surge in energy costs continues to be the dominant concern in Southeast Asian markets including the Philippines...
Govt borrowings down in April
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Mayvelin U. Caraballo
The national government's gross borrowings declined to P101.26 billion in April, bringing the year-to-date total to P1.18 trillion, according to Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) figures. As of April 2022, actual gross borrowings was P101.260 billion, down 62.76 percent from P271.95 billion a year earlier...
Better foreign policy, maritime security urged
Philippine Star, June 6, 2022
Rainier Allan Ronda
President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. can immediately establish that he is different from his predecessor in the critical areas of foreign policy and maritime security, experts agreed during a forum organized by think tank Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (Stratbase-ADRI)...
Filipinos pin high hopes on incoming administration
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
BusinessMirror Editorial
The presidency is arguably the hardest job in the country because the president needs to represent the varied, competing interests of more than 110 million Filipinos. The challenge for incoming President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is to govern well and create favorable circumstances to attract broad public support...
Bulusan eruption rains ash, forces evacuation
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Frances Mangosing, Ma. April Mier-Manjares and Michael Jaucian
More than a thousand families in Sorsogon were ordered to evacuate after Mount Bulusan erupted at around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, with steam-rich gray plumes rising about a kilometer and raining down ash on several villages in Juban town and the adjoining municipality of Irosin...
Higher daily wages to take effect in 14 regions
BusinessWorld, June 6, 2022
JVDO
A new daily minimum wage will be implemented in 14 regions this month, the Labor department said on Sunday, adding that domestic workers will also have higher monthly pay...
Lawmaker presses bid to suspend oil tax collection
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Jeannette I. Andrade
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate on Sunday reiterated a call to suspend oil excise tax collection and regulate the downstream oil industry...
DA issues rules for rabbit importation
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Jordeene B. Lagare
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has issued guidelines on the importation of rabbits as an alternative to pork, which many local farmers have stopped producing...
Govt simplifies land valuation under CARP
Manila Standard, June 5, 2022
The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) have simplified the procedures and documentary requirements to speed up the conduct of field investigations and land valuation activities for landholdings covered under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP)...
FIRB harmonizing IPA investor fees
The Manila Times, June 4, 2022
Mayvelin U. Caraballo
Following a directive from its chairman, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd, the Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) is standardizing investor fees collected by investment promotion agencies (IPAs)...
Lawmaker seeks P1,000 hike in senior’s pension
Manila Standard, June 5, 2022
Rio N. Araja
Senior Citizen party-list Rep. Rodolfo Ordanes on Sunday vowed to work for the increase in the elderly’s social pension, following the approval of a bicameral committee report on a P1,000 increase...
Gabriela hopes to revive divorce bill
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Jeannette I. Andrade
Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Arlene Brosas is looking to again file a bill on divorce in the 19th Congress, which she hoped would finally become law this time around...
PHL medical services exports dropped 43% in 2020–WTO
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
Andrea E. San Juan
Philippine medical services exports dropped by 43 percent in 2020, according to the World Trade Organization (WTO)...
PH jumps to 33rd place in Nikkei Asia’s latest Covid-19 Recovery Index
Manila Bulletin, June 5, 2022
Analou de Vera
The Philippines was ranked 33rd in the Covid-19 Recovery ranking by Tokyo-based news magazine Nikkei Asia...
Local cement makers decry ‘dumping’ by Vietnam
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
Andrea E. San Juan
Republic Cement and the local cement manufacturing industry denounced the continued dumping of cement imports from Vietnam, saying it has resulted in material injury to domestic manufacturers...
PH, South Korea to hold first joint military exercise
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Frances Mangosing
The Philippines and South Korea will hold a joint military exercise for the first time, the South Korean Ministry of Defense announced in Seoul on Friday...
PCIC’s coverage for farmers still inadequate, World Bank study says
BusinessWorld, June 6, 2022
TJT
A World Bank study found that the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp.’s (PCIC) coverage for farmers remains inadequate, the Department of Finance said on Saturday...
Lorenzana, SKorean Defense chief meet, tackle SCS, NKorea
The Manila Times, June 5, 2022
Francis Earl Cueto
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana met with newly-appointed South Korean Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-sup during his official visit to the Republic of Korea on Friday and discussed bilateral defense cooperation between their countries, including issues in the South China Sea and the Korean Peninsula...
PH fares well in international poll on women advancement
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Roy Stephen C. Canivel
A survey of women entrepreneurs in 65 countries last year showed that the Philippines was at the top in terms of advancement outcomes but placed 26th overall in the global rankings...
PH eyes India for rice supply if ASEAN sources form cartel
Manila Standard, June 5, 2022
The Philippines is looking at India, reputedly the world’s top rice exporter, as an alternative source of the staple in case rice-producing countries in Southeast Asia raised their prices and form a rice cartel, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Saturday...
Putin warns US against giving Ukraine longer-range missiles
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Reuters
President Vladimir Putin warned the United States in an interview broadcast on Sunday that Russia would strike new targets if the West supplied longer-range missiles to Ukraine for use in high-precision mobile rocket systems...
South Korea, US launch 8 missiles in response to North Korea missile firings
GMA News, June 6, 2022
South Korea and the United States fired eight surface-to-surface missiles early on Monday towards the sea off South Korea's east coast in response to North Korea's short range ballistic missile launches on Sunday, Yonhap news reported on Monday...
WHO: 780 monkeypox outbreak cases, risk level 'moderate'
ABS-CBN News, June 5, 2022
The World Health Organization said Sunday that 780 laboratory-confirmed monkeypox cases had been reported to it from 27 non-endemic countries, while maintaining that the global risk level was moderate...
Australia accuses China of dangerous interception over South China Sea
Philippine Star, June 5, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Australia on Sunday accused the Chinese military of putting an Australian Defense Force flight crew at risk when their plane was intercepted late last month over the South China Sea...
North Korea launches unidentified ballistic missile — Seoul
Philippine Star, June 5, 2022
Agence France-Presse
North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile into waters off its east coast on Sunday, South Korea's military said, after Seoul and Washington staged their first joint drills involving a US aircraft carrier in more than four years...
Beijing to allow indoor dining, further easing COVID-19 curbs
Rappler, June 5, 2022
Reuters
Beijing will further relax COVID-19 curbs by allowing indoor dining, as China’s capital steadily returns to normal with inflections falling, state media said on Sunday, June 5...
Abbott: Formula production resumes
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Production resumed Saturday (Sunday in Manila) at an Abbott Nutrition baby formula plant in the US whose closure helped fuel a crippling nationwide shortage...
US mulls lifting some China tariffs to fight inflation
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Reuters
US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Sunday that President Joe Biden has asked his team to look at the option of lifting some tariffs on China that were put into place by former President Donald Trump, to combat the current high inflation...
Russia strikes Kyiv for first time in weeks as battle rages in east
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Reuters
Russia struck Ukraine’s capital Kyiv with missiles early on Sunday for the first time in more than a month, while Ukrainian officials said a counter-attack on the main battlefield in the east had retaken half of the city of Sievierodonetsk...
Gunmen attack Catholic church in Nigeria, kill worshippers
ABS-CBN News, June 6, 2022
Agence France-Presse
Gunmen with explosives stormed a Catholic church and opened fire in southwest Nigeria's Ondo state on Sunday, killing "many" worshippers and wounding others, the government and police said...
$1 billion has been lost in cryptocurrency scams since 2021, FTC warns
CNN Philippines, June 5, 2022
Ramishah Maruf, CNN
Cryptocurrency scammers have stolen over $1 billion from 46,000 people since the start of 2021, a new Federal Trade Commission report says...
Comelec: Voter education needed despite automated polls
Philippine Star, June 6, 2022
Evelyn Macairan
Despite the use of the automated election system (AES) since 2010, an official of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said there is still a need for voter education...
Ways and means chief: Tax hikes alone aren’t a solution
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
Butch Fernandez
Preparing to assume his post as chairman of the Senate’s Ways and Means Committee in the 19th Congress, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said the huge fiscal challenge to a new Marcos administration that will inherit a P12.7 trillion debt, while still helping pandemic-affected sectors to recover...
Expanded public consultation sought on managing gov’t debt
BusinessWorld, June 5, 2022
Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
Civil society organizations (CSOs) need to be given a place at the table in determining how to deal with the national debt, after they were largely left out of discussions on the record levels of debt the current government has taken on, a think tank said...
Gov’t expert urges adoption of small nuclear reactors
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Jane Bautista
As the incoming administration of President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. considers the inclusion of nuclear power in the country’s energy mix, the government’s nuclear science chief is pushing for the adoption of small modular reactors (SMRs) instead of refurbishing the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP)...
DepEd completes education road map
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Jane Bautista
Outgoing Education Secretary Leonor Briones will soon turn over to incoming Education Secretary and Vice President-elect Sara Duterte an eight-year road map aimed at enhancing the delivery and quality of basic education in the country...
Ombudsman orders suspension of ARTA officials for graft
Businessworld, June 5, 2022
John Victor D. Ordoñez
The Ombudsman has ordered the suspension of five officials of the Anti-Red Tape Authority including its chief pending a corruption investigation in connection with the grant of telecommunication frequencies to a local player...
Junk case vs Marcos, OSG asks SC
Daily Tribune, June 6, 2022
Alvin Murcia
Solicitor General Jose Calida has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to junk a petition assailing the dismissal by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) of a case to cancel the Certificate of Candidacy (CoC) of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr...
View that Malampaya deal ‘private’ backed
Daily Tribune, June 6, 2022
Maria Romero
A senior member of Congress shared the Department of Energy’s (DoE) view that the ongoing transactions involving ports magnate Enrique Razon Jr.’s offer for a controlling stake in the Malampaya consortium should be treated as a private commercial deal...
Dar: Agri budget should be doubled or tripled
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Kristina Maralit
Agriculture Secretary William Dar has warned that if the Department of Agriculture's budget is not doubled or tripled, it will not be able to break the cycle of problems that it has long been grappling with...
BBM's foreign policy must be assertive – experts
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Kaithreen Cruz
Political experts have advised President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos to immediately establish his difference from the outgoing administration in the critical areas of foreign policy and maritime security...
DOH fears new COVID-19 surge as jabs slow down
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Kathleen de Villa and Nestor Corrales
The possibility of a local transmission of the Omicron subvariant BA.5 was “very high,” the Department of Health (DOH) said on Saturday after two individuals from the same household in Central Luzon tested positive for the BA.5 subvariant...
P14.4-million grant for book authors unused since 2019 – COA
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Julie M. Aurelio
The Commission on Audit (COA) has called out the National Book Development Board (NBDB) for not using the interest income from its trust fund in awarding publication grants to Filipino book authors...
Local governments targeting P305.7B in revenues for 2022
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 4, 2022
Ronnel W. Domingo
The Department of Finance (DOF), through the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF), tasked local treasurers to collect a total of P305.7 billion in revenues for 2022, which is 22 percent more than the actual intake of P249.8 billion in 2021...
DOH warns public of scammers using names of health officials to solicit money
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 5, 2022
Zacarian Sarao
The Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday warned the public of online scammers who use the names of DOH officials to solicit money...
Lift state of calamity, risk losing EUA validity—DOH
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 4, 2022
Kathleen de Villa
The country will risk losing the validity of the emergency use authorization (EUA) granted to vaccines and medications used to prevent and treat COVID-19 once the state of calamity status is lifted, according to a health official...
Government slashes borrowings by 63% to P101 billion in April
Philippine Star, June 6, 2022
Elijah Felice Rosales
As the government moves to reopen the economy to full capacity, it brought down its borrowings by 63 percent in April by minimizing both its domestic and external financing. According to the Bureau of the Treasury, the government cut its gross borrowings by 63 percent to P101.26 billion in April from P271.95 billion a year ago...
BSP: Consumers upbeat on next 12 mos
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
Bianca Cuaresma
Consumers expect the economy to be less favorable toward their needs in the second quarter of the year, but would likely turn better in the next 12 months, a recent survey by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed...
Volatility in stocks expected anew
Philippine Star, June 6, 2022
Iris Gonzales
Philippine stocks may continue to experience volatility this week, according to analysts...
Banks' bad loans down to P447B
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Mayvelin U. Caraballo
The amount of bad loans in the Philippine banking system fell to P447 billion at the end of April, according to figures issued over the weekend by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). Gross non-performing loans (NPLs) by lenders decreased by 3.49 percent to P447.43 billion from P463.65 billion a year ago...
Raw nickel export halt pitched as minerals value rises 32%
BusinessMirror, June 6, 2022
Cai Ordinario
The Philippines should stop exporting raw nickel and build at least two ferro-nickel smelters in order to take advantage of the rise in demand for electric vehicles, according to a local expert...
Inflation exposing PH shares to a further sell-off
Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 6, 2022
Miguel R. Camus
Global and domestic headwinds continue to weigh on the local stock market, putting investors “on guard” against further downside risks...
Bread, sardines prices seen to increase
GMA News, June 5, 2022
Food producers are set to increase the prices of basic goods such as bread and sardines, citing the higher increase in prices of raw materials...
State agriculture insurer a failure – DoF
The Manila Times, June 6, 2022
Mayvelin U. Caraballo
Agricultural insurance as administered by state-owned Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) is severely deficient, the Department of Finance (DoF) said over the weekend, citing the results of a World Bank study that also recommended a system overhaul...
BSP ready to protect peso, growth
Manila Bulletin, June 5, 2022
Lee C. Chipongian
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is ready to implement a policy response to address global financial spillovers that could weaken the peso further and interrupt the flow of capital into the country that will affect the growth trajectory...
NEW ACQUISITION
Applied econometrics : a practical guide
by Chung-Ki Min
Publisher: Oxfordshire, England : Routledge, 2019
HB 139 M56 2019 B-38481
Abstract: The book is an extremely user-friendly and application-focused book on econometrics. Unlike many econometrics textbooks which are heavily theoretical on abstractions, this book is perfect for beginners and promises simplicity and practicality to the understanding of econometric models. Written in an easy-to-read manner, the book begins with hypothesis testing and moves forth to simple and multiple regression models. It also includes advanced topics: Endogeneity and Two-stage Least Squares; Simultaneous Equations Models; Panel Data Models; Qualitative and Limited Dependent Variable Models; Vector Autoregressive (VAR) Models; Autocorrelation and ARCH/GARCH Models; and Unit Root and Cointegration. The book also illustrates the use of computer software (EViews, SAS and R) for economic estimating and modeling. Its practical applications make the book an instrumental, go-to guide for solid foundation in the fundamentals of econometrics. In addition, this book includes excerpts from relevant articles published in top-tier academic journals. This integration of published articles helps the readers to understand how econometric models are applied to real-world use cases.