Business
Bicol region unemployment rate down to 6.6% in Jan.
March 14, 2023, 7:28 pm
LEGAZPI CITY – The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) 5 (Bicol) on Tuesday reported that the region’s unemployment rate in January declined to 6.6 percent from 7.8 percent in the same month last year. "In terms of magnitude, employed persons increased by 75,000 in January 2023, estimated at… Read More
Fed survey: Short-term inflation expectations in US falls sharply
March 14, 2023, 2:02 pm
ISTANBUL – Short-term inflation expectations in the United States declined sharply in February, according to a survey released Monday by the US Federal Reserve. At the one-year-ahead horizon, the median inflation expectations dropped by 0.8 percentage points to 4.2 percent, showed the Fed's… Read More
Gov’t agencies asked to support local businesses in Ilocos Norte
March 13, 2023, 9:00 pm
LAOAG CITY – The Ilocos Norte government is calling on national government agencies, regional line agencies, and other government agencies holding offices in the province to support local businesses by purchasing their goods and services to foster economic growth in the community. On Monday,… Read More
PEZA eyes investments from SMEs in China’s Yiwu Market
March 13, 2023, 8:42 pm
MANILA – Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from China’s Yiwu Market, the world’s largest wholesale market, is exploring opportunities in the Philippines. In a statement Monday, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) said the agency received a delegation from Zhejiang province last… Read More
Vehicle sales rise 27% in February
March 13, 2023, 8:40 pm
MANILA – Local assemblers of automotive vehicles sold 30,905 units in February this year, 27.2 percent higher than the same month in 2022 with sales of 24,304 units, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturing of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) reported… Read More
DOE chief wants to assess taxes on energy sector
March 13, 2023, 8:08 pm
MANILA – Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Raphael Lotilla Monday said his agency is looking to assess the taxes imposed in the energy sector to determine how these contributed to the high power cost in the country. Speaking to the members of the Makati Business Club in Makati City, Lotilla… Read More
PSEi slips on worries over developments in US; peso strengthens
March 13, 2023, 6:34 pm
MANILA – Worries about developments in the United States due partly to the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapse resulted in the negative close of the local bourse’s main index on Monday but the peso gained against the US dollar. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.69 percent, or… Read More
DOE urges consumers to save power for summer
March 13, 2023, 5:41 pm
MANILA – Department of Energy (DOE) Raphael Lotilla has urged Filipinos to observe efficient use of electricity to help ensure the availability of sufficient power in preparation for the dry season when higher temperature triggers increase in demand. On the sidelines of Makati Business Club’s… Read More
T-bill rates up across all tenors
March 13, 2023, 4:59 pm
MANILA – The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) partially awarded both the three and six-month Treasury bills (T-bills) on Monday but fully awarded the one-year paper despite the rate uptick across-the-board. It offered all tenors for PHP5 billion each but only awarded PHP3.781 billion worth of 91-day… Read More
Gasoline prices up; diesel, kerosene down
March 13, 2023, 4:17 pm
MANILA – Oil companies will adjust petroleum prices starting 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. In separate statements, Caltex, Cleanfuel, Jetti, Petro Gazz, Seaoil and Shell said they will raise gasoline prices by PHP1 per liter. This is the second straight week these companies hiked gasoline prices. The same… Read More
Fitch revises 2023 global growth forecast to 2%
March 12, 2023, 3:13 pm
ISTANBUL – Fitch Ratings revised its global economic growth forecast for 2023 to 2% from 1.4%, saying growth expectations for this year improved during the past three months. "Global growth prospects for 2023 have improved significantly since December," the rating agency said Friday in its… Read More
Economist bullish on rebound of FDIs
March 10, 2023, 8:58 pm
MANILA – An economist is optimistic about the rebound of foreign direct investments (FDIs) to the Philippines given the continued recovery of the domestic economy. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported on Friday the 23.2-percent decline of net FDIs to USD9.2 billion in 2022 compared to… Read More
Ilocos Region inflation rate down to 8.3% in Feb
March 10, 2023, 8:51 pm
MALASIQUI, Pangasinan – The inflation rate in the Ilocos Region has declined from 9.3 percent in January this year to 8.3 percent in February. This, however, is still higher by 5.2 percent points from the recorded rate of 3.1 percent in February 2022. In a statement issued on Thursday,… Read More
BSP's 28-day securities' rate up anew
March 10, 2023, 8:18 pm
MANILA – Demand for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) 28-day bill was strong on Friday, resulting in its full award despite the rate uptick. Data released by the central bank showed that the debt security was offered for PHP150 billion, higher than the PHP140 billion last week. Bids… Read More
PSEi slips on impact of higher interest rates; peso almost flat
March 10, 2023, 7:46 pm
MANILA – Fears over the impact of higher interest rates on borrowers’ capacity to pay resulted in another slide of the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) on Friday but the peso managed to end the week sideways against the US dollar. The main equities index shed 0.29 percent, or 19.39… Read More
FPI: PBBM admin's infra push to revitalize economy, create jobs
March 10, 2023, 7:35 pm
MANILA – The Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) said Friday a multitude of local businesses as well as job-seekers stand to benefit from the 194 infrastructure flagship projects (IFPs) being rolled out by the Marcos administration over the next five years. According to the business… Read More
Malampaya shutdown triggers higher power rates in March
March 10, 2023, 6:54 pm
MANILA – The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) announced on Friday that power rates this month would rise due to higher generation charges triggered by the maintenance shutdown of the Malampaya gas field in February. Electricity charges in March will increase to PHP11.4348 per kilowatt hour… Read More
JCR affirms ‘A’ credit rating for PH
March 10, 2023, 5:56 pm
MANILA – Japan Credit Rating Agency, Ltd. (JCR) has cited the continued improvement of the Philippines’ macroeconomic fundamentals amidst the challenging global environment as the primary factor in affirming its A-level credit rating on the country. Citing a report released by JCR on March 10,… Read More
8 manufacturing, 2 logistics Taiwanese firms eye hubs in PH
March 10, 2023, 4:52 pm
MANILA – The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has received Taiwanese companies this week for a business mission in the country. In a statement Friday, PEZA said eight manufacturing companies and two logistics firms from Taiwan are looking at registering their projects with PEZA or the… Read More
US donut brand eyes partner for 1st store in PH
March 10, 2023, 3:51 pm
MANILA – American donut brand Duck Donuts is looking for a Filipino partner to open its first store in the Philippines as it expands its presence in Asia. Duck Donuts is among the 10 visiting companies from the United States that are part of the Trade Winds business mission in the Association of… Read More
