Category: Hot News

SAN FRANCISCO – OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT, on Thursday said it is developing an upgrade to its viral chatbot that users can customize, as it works to address concerns about bias in artificial intelligence. The San Francisco-based startup, which Microsoft Corp. has funded and used to power its latest technology, said it has worked […]

Moderna Inc. on Thursday said its closely watched experimental messenger RNA-based influenza vaccine generated a strong immune response against A strains of the flu but failed to show it was at least as effective as an approved vaccine versus less prevalent influenza B. The resultsdashed investor hopes that the company might plug its COVID franchise […]

TOKYO, Feb 17 (Reuters) – For Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Japan’s next central bank chief had to symbolize a departure from the unconventional policies of his predecessor Shinzo Abe – but without angering pro-growth lawmakers of Abe’s powerful political faction. The tricky task of steering the Bank of Japan (BOJ) out of years of ultra-low […]

BRUSSELS – Alphabet Inc’s Google, Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. and Twitter face stricter EU online content rules according to monthly user numbers published by the companies on Thursday which exceeded the EU threshold. The new rules known as the Digital Services Act (DSA) labels companies with more than 45 million users as very large […]

2022 was a banner year for the Lexus IS sport sedan as it edged out its rivals for the top spot in the luxury compact passenger car segment of the yearend CAMPI sales report Owning a Lexus IS is an amazing experience in itself. This luxury sport sedan pushes the envelope of driving performance giving […]

Fujifilm Philippines plans to introduce more healthcare solutions in response to rising local demand, its newly appointed president announced on Thursday. “Fujifilm will continue to provide a range of products and services that address the needs of healthcare personnel, helping to improve medical care and supporting the well-being of people,” Fujifilm Philippines President Masahiro Uehara […]

THE PESO strengthened against the dollar on Thursday after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) delivered another large increase in benchmark interest rates. The local currency closed at P55.12 versus the greenback on Thursday, climbing by five centavos from Wednesday’s P55.17 finish, Bankers Association of the Philippines data showed. The peso opened Thursday’s trading session […]

STOCKS dropped on Thursday on last-minute profit taking amid the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) decision to hike borrowing costs anew. The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) dropped by 6.18 points or 0.09% to close at 6,815.91 on Thursday, while the broader all shares index gained 2.90 points or 0.08 % to end at […]

By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Reporter THE Department of Transportation (DoTr) is considering offering Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) with Light Rail Transit Line 2 (LRT Line 2) as a bundle when the commuter transport services are privatized. Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Cesar B. Chavez said in an interview that the DoTr has created […]

THE success of Philippine participation in the world’s largest trade deal will require adequate border inspections and quarantine controls to deter smuggling, Senate President Juan Miguel F. Zubiri said. In a statement on Thursday, Mr. Zubiri said the upgrading of border controls on commodity imports will also need to be accompanied by capacity-building programs for […]

TRADE Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual said a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) is “an essential mechanism in the Philippines’ relationship with the EU” and called for negotiations for an FTA to resume. Speaking at a European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) luncheon in Makati City on Thursday, Mr. Pascual […]

THE departments of Budget and Management (DBM) and Health (DoH) are streamlining the application process for public and private health workers seeking compensation for falling ill during the pandemic. In a joint administrative order, the departments said revised implementing guidelines on the grant of COVID-19 compensation “removes ambiguities,” permits “innovative ways of accepting applications,” and […]

BANK of the Philippine Islands (BPI) has reaffirmed its Philippine gross domestic product (GDP) forecast for 2023 at 5% to 6%, while warning that economic managers need to tap more growth drivers to make the recovery more robust. BPI Global Markets Economist Rafael Alfonso Q. Manalili said in a statement on Thursday that the GDP […]

THE government’s approach of offering hybrid rice seed for raising productivity is unsustainable because farmers abandon hybrid once subsidies are withdrawn, a farm organization said. “They should look into why hybrid seed usage has not expanded significantly despite the seed subsidies being given by the DA and why farmers revert to inbred seed when the […]

INCREASED PET adoption in the Philippines is driving pet food sales, but there has been no corresponding increase in vet visits, according to Royal Canin Philippines. “We grew close to 35-40% during those years of the pandemic (2020-2022); whereas, in the past, we would be growing a modest 15-20%,” said Gerard Y. Poa, market head […]

By Alyssa Nicole O. Tan, Reporter CHINA on Wednesday night denied its coast guard had aimed lasers at the crew of a Philippine Navy ship in an incident that has stoked long-running diplomatic tensions over China’s expansive claims the South China Sea. A Chinese Coast Guard vessel used a hand-held laser speed detector to measure […]

THERE is no evidence yet that the newly detected Omicron subvariant XBF causes more severe symptoms of the coronavirus, Philippine health authorities said on Thursday. “We see this as a variant that we need to monitor,” Edsel Maurice T. Salvaña, a member of the Health department’s technical advisory group, told a televised news briefing in mixed […]

FORMER Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has urged the House of Representatives to help defend ex-President Rodrigo R. Duterte as he gets probed by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for his deadly war on drugs. The Pampanga representative and more than a dozen congressmen filed a resolution seeking the “unequivocal defense” of Mr. Duterte. His presidency […]

A MAGNITUDE 6 earthquake rocked Masbate early morning Thursday after a magnitude 5 tremor hit the island province in central Philippines late Wednesday afternoon, according to state seismologists.    The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said no major structural damage were reported based on the initial assessment conducted by emergency responders.  “Upon assessment, […]