Business
88K new online businesses register with DTI in 2020
January 20, 2021, 4:11 pm
MANILA – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has registered record-high numbers in business name registration in 2020 driven by new registration from online entrepreneurs, the trade chief said Wednesday. At the virtual launch of "DiskarTech Ipon Galing", DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez said… Read More
PRRD allows DOF to negotiate US grant for BIR digital upgrade
January 20, 2021, 4:08 pm
MANILA – President Rodrigo R. Duterte has authorized the Department of Finance (DOF) to enter into talks with the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) for a possible USD809,450 grant (about PHP39 million) meant to assist the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) digital… Read More
Banker says PH banks ready for digital transformation
January 20, 2021, 2:51 pm
MANILA – An official of Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) said the country is now ready for digital banking and relative innovations, citing the strong support from the government. “We have the support from our regulators,” Henry Aguda, UnionBank Chief Technology and Operations… Read More
One-stop hub mobile app for SMEs launched
January 20, 2021, 1:33 pm
MANILA – As quarantine restrictions and other health safety protocols have affected business operations, UnionBank on Tuesday launched a mobile application that serves as a one-stop hub tailored for all the financial-related needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Wherever they are, they… Read More
Alorica orders 80K doses of AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine
January 19, 2021, 8:37 pm
MANILA – Business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Alorica Inc. will be providing a free coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccine for its employees as it orders 80,000 doses of vaccine from AstraZeneca. Alorica is one of the big companies that signed an agreement with the national government… Read More
Global oil supply to go up by 1 million barrels per day in 2021
January 19, 2021, 8:29 pm
MOSCOW – Global supply on the oil market is expected to go up by 1 million barrels per day in 2021 after a decrease by 6.6 million barrels per day in 2020 mainly due to OPEC+ nations, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a report obtained by TASS. Meanwhile, the agency considers an… Read More
10-year T-bond rate declines
January 19, 2021, 7:06 pm
MANILA – The rate of the Philippines 10-year Treasury bond (T-bond) declined Tuesday due to strong demand for government securities. The average yield of the T-bond, which has a remaining term of six years and three months, slipped to 2.719 percent from 2.791 percent during the auction for the… Read More
Stocks, peso almost unchanged on wait-and-see stance
January 19, 2021, 7:03 pm
MANILA – Both the local main equities index and the peso ended Tuesday sideways as investors took on a wait-and-see stance partly on developments in the US. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) shed 0.07 percent, or 4.99 points, to 7,198.45 points. All Shares gave up 0.04 percent, or… Read More
Cautious optimism for PH growth in 2021: biz strategist
January 19, 2021, 6:40 pm
MANILA – The country is expected to regain its growth momentum by the second half of 2021 as challenging economic recovery remains on the horizon, the chief strategist of an equity brokerage house said on Tuesday. In a webinar of the German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI),… Read More
Unionbank eyes 1M SME clients in near term
January 19, 2021, 6:09 pm
MANILA – An official of Union Bank of the Philippines (Unionbank) is optimistic of hitting the bank’s goal to have one million small and medium enterprises (SMEs) clients in the near term, citing the rise of people’s entrepreneurial skills during the pandemic. In a virtual briefing for the… Read More
BSP, QCP launch commemorative Lapu-Lapu banknote, medal
January 18, 2021, 9:22 pm
MANILA – The 500th anniversary of victory of Mactan and the Philippines’ role in the circumnavigation of the world marks the issuance of the PHP5,000 Lapu-Lapu commemorative banknote and medal. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno, whose message was read by BSP Deputy… Read More
Groups welcome deferment of PhilHealth contribution hike
January 18, 2021, 7:03 pm
MANILA – Trade unions and business groups have welcomed the temporary suspension of contribution increase for members of Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) which will provide relief to stakeholders amid the ongoing health and economic crisis. “As we are all well aware, workers and… Read More
Peso nearly unchanged vs. dollar as stocks index slips
January 18, 2021, 6:13 pm
MANILA – The local stock barometer ended Monday in the negative territory due to fiscal aid concerns in the US while the peso closed sideways against the greenback. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) lost 0.48 percent, or 35.02 points, to 7,203.44 points. All Shares slipped by 0.49… Read More
DTI welcomes tariff retention on imported deboned meat
January 18, 2021, 6:10 pm
MANILA – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has welcomed the signing of Executive Order (EO) 123 retaining the tariff rate of imported mechanically deboned meat (MDM) of chicken and turkey at 5 percent until end-2022. In a statement Monday, the DTI said retaining the tariff rate for… Read More
T-bill rates decline on strong demand
January 18, 2021, 5:14 pm
MANILA – The rates of the Philippines’ treasury bills (T-bills) declined across-the-board Monday due to strong domestic liquidity. The average rate of the 91-day paper slipped to 0.984 percent, the 182-day to 1.348 percent, and the 364-day to 1.582 percent. These were at 0.977 percent, 1.360… Read More
Oil prices to go up for 3rd straight week
January 18, 2021, 4:18 pm
MANILA – Oil players are set to increase their prices Tuesday morning, posting a third consecutive weekly rise. In separate statements, Cleanfuel, Petro Gazz, Seaoil, and Shell said they will increase gasoline prices by PHP1 per liter while diesel prices by PHP1.05 per liter. Seaoil and… Read More
PSE, PDS urge Congress to pass CREATE bill
January 18, 2021, 1:20 pm
MANILA – The country’s equities and fixed-income exchanges have called on Congress to swiftly pass the proposed Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE) to make the Philippines an attractive investment hub in the region and the domestic capital market a viable venue… Read More
China grants P3.7-B to PH to support infra, dev’t initiatives
January 17, 2021, 12:28 pm
MANILA – The Philippines and China signed Saturday an agreement on economic and technical cooperation that will provide the country with a grant of 500 million renminbi (about USD77.38 million or PHP3.72 billion) from China to support the implementation of infrastructure projects and other… Read More
AC Motors targets 10% market share in 2025
January 16, 2021, 4:31 pm
MANILA – AC Motors, the automotive group of the Ayala Group of Companies, is eyeing to increase its market share to 10 percent in 2025, its president Antonio Zara III said on Saturday. “Despite the setbacks suffered by the automotive industry in 2020, we continue to work towards achieving at… Read More
PH economy still facing risk but ‘worst is over’: Lopez
January 16, 2021, 9:41 am
MANILA – The Philippines is still facing challenges this year that may hamper economic growth due to the pandemic but the “worst is over” in 2020, the country's top trade official said. In an interview with CNBC Asia on Friday, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez… Read More
