Category: Hot News

PHILIPPINE SHARES closed lower on Tuesday amid weak trading volume as investors look for fresh leads. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) declined by 41.71 points or 0.64% to 6,479.93 on Tuesday, while the broader all shares index went down by 16.86 points or 0.48% to close at 3,469.47. “This Tuesday, the local market dropped […]

THE PESO inched up against the dollar on Tuesday after inflation eased further in May. The local currency closed at P56.22 versus the dollar on Tuesday, rising by two centavos from Monday’s P56.24 finish, data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines’ website showed. The local unit opened Tuesday’s session at P56.19 per dollar. Its […]

REFINED SUGAR output is now estimated to have dropped by 110,000 metric tons (MT) compared to production levels in the previous crop season to about 640,000 MT, with yields affected by early milling as well as unfavorable weather. Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) Acting Administrator Pablo Luis S. Azcona said in a briefing that milling output […]

ENERGY executives in the Philippines cited “community opposition” as a major hurdle to implementing energy projects and expressed concerns that such frictions could potentially hinder the country’s transition to greener energy. Research firm GHD, citing the results of a study, said 76% of Philippine energy industry leaders identified community opposition as among the “biggest barriers” […]

ENERGY Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla called on developed countries to ensure a “just” transition to green technology for poorer countries, citing the need for low-cost financing and technology transfers. “We hope our development partners and countries like Sweden would assist us not only in making the private sector share technology and access to innovation, but […]

THE PHILIPPINES can become a leader in developing renewable energy (RE) due to the resources it has at its disposal, openness to foreign investment, and flexible grid network, consulting firm Bain & Co. said. “We are seeing countries like Vietnam and the Philippines lead the way in deploying renewable energy and transforming their power generation […]

THE Department of Energy (DoE) has issued new procedures to increase the share of renewable energy (RE) in on-grid facilities under the Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) scheme starting this year. In separate department circulars, the DoE issued amendments to the RPS for both on-grid and off-grid areas, which were signed on May 23. “This RPS, […]

THE PHILIPPINES has stayed out of the European Commission’s intellectual property rights (IPR) watch list since last being listed in 2019, with officials touting the achievement as a mark of the country’s attractiveness as a potential investment destination. “Our exclusion from the list from 2019 signifies that we remain an attractive investment destination to trade […]

EMPLOYMENT and real wages in agriculture recovered during the pandemic due to surging demand for produce, the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) said. “The experience of agriculture during the COVID-19 crisis had evidently been a unique one in the Philippines, with the sector’s employment share increasing, temporarily interrupting a declining trend that had persisted […]

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter THE PHILIPPINES’ best course of action in easing tensions in the South China Sea is to push for the finalization of a code of conduct in the disputed waterway, political analysts said on Tuesday. “The Philippines must be patient and pragmatic in negotiations with all concerned countries that have […]

ISRAEL has vowed to boost its partnership with the Philippines in agriculture and water management, and tourism, the presidential palace said on Tuesday. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen made the commitment during a meeting with President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Monday, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said in a press release. “I think that […]

THE NATIONAL Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Tuesday filed a criminal complaint against the owners of the sunken fuel tanker that caused a major oil spill in Oriental Mindoro. Officials from the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) were also named in the complaint that cites falsified documents for the vessel […]

THE BANGSAMORO Ministry of the Interior and Local Government has launched a program that aims to guide local governments on how they can increase their internally-generated revenue, which could be used for their own public service initiatives.  The Revenue Enhancement Assistance for Local Government Units (REAL) program will be piloted in three towns in Maguindanao […]

THE CIVIL Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) on Tuesday updated its warning to pilots relating to volcanoes that should be avoided, with Kanlaon now added to Taal and Mayon as being at risk of sudden eruptions.   “The CAAP has updated its NOTAM (notices to airmen) to inform and alert flying aircraft of the current […]

NO heavy rains are expected directly from tropical depression Chedeng, the third typhoon to enter the Philippines this year, but it could enhance the prevailing southwest monsoon, the state weather agency said on Tuesday.    Chedeng “is forecast to remain far from the Philippine landmass,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said in […]

A SENATOR on Tuesday emphasized the strict prohibition of government pension and insurance funds from participating in the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), saying this was the intent of the bill approved by Congress.   Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said last week that pension funds may invest in projects bankrolled by the MIF.   “It is […]

THE GOVERNMENT will promote “proper” water management and push for crop diversification to mitigate the potential impacts of El Niño, which is expected to affect the agriculture sector, according to Malacañang.   The strategies that the Department of Agriculture (DA) has adopted in anticipation of the dry and warm weather condition also include adjustment of planting […]

A LAWMAKER wants an investigation into the inedible rice allegedly given to public school teachers in provinces as part of the government’s one-time rice assistance.    “We have received reports and complaints that the rice given in Nueva Ecija, Mindoro, Bacolod City at Zamboanga del Norte are inedible while the provisions for the rest of the […]

THE SUPREME COURT (SC) has found a former secretary of the National Commission for Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) guilty of simple misconduct over the misuse of former Senator Gregorio B. Honasan’s primary development assistance fund (PDAF) worth P29.1 million in 2012.   The ruling overturned a Court of Appeals and Ombudsman ruling that found former NCMF Secretary […]

THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (DA) on Tuesday assured that its operations will not be affected by the graft complaint filed against DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo F. Panganiban over the alleged illegal importation of refined sugar in February.    “We continue to work, we have committed to ourselves as far as public service is concerned,” DA Spokesperson […]