Business
Prospects on jobs, economy remain favorable: NEDA chief
June 5, 2020, 5:08 pm
MANILA – The country’s chief economist remains optimistic about the prospects of economy and employment despite the setbacks brought by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. In a virtual briefing Friday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said gradual recovery is… Read More
BSP rate cut seen this June due to unemployment rate uptick
June 5, 2020, 4:10 pm
MANILA – The continued deceleration of the Philippines’ inflation rate is a non-issue vis-à-vis the central bank’s key policy rates but a possible rate cut is projected this month after the government reported a record-high unemployment rate last April. In a report on Friday, ANZ Research… Read More
Luzon grid back to normal
June 5, 2020, 3:40 pm
MANILA – The Department of Energy (DOE) announced Friday that power situation in Luzon is back to normal after placing the Luzon grid under "yellow alert" as two power plants shut down on Thursday. “With both the 344-megawatt (MW) Masinloc Coal-Fired Power Plant Unit 2 and 500-MW San… Read More
PH inflation rate slows further to 2.1% in May
June 5, 2020, 12:11 pm
MANILA – Rate of price increases further decelerated to 2.1 percent last May from April’s 2.2 percent primarily due to the drop in the annual inflation rate of the transport index. It averaged at 2.5 percent to date, within the government’s 2 to 4 percent target band until 2022. Bangko… Read More
GSIS adopts contactless filing of claims, benefits
June 4, 2020, 9:37 pm
MANILA – To help curb the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), state pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) is now adopting contactless methods of accepting application for claims and benefits after successfully shifting to online loan application in March this… Read More
AllHome profit rises 30% to P270-M in Q1
June 4, 2020, 9:32 pm
MANILA – AllHome Corp., a pioneering one-stop shop home store, posted a 30-percent jump in net income for the first three months of 2020 to PHP270.2 million from PHP207.1 million for the same period last year. Total revenues for the first quarter also increased by 41 percent to PHP3.4 billion… Read More
Diokno likens PH's credit rating affirmations to upgrade
June 4, 2020, 8:24 pm
MANILA – Bangko Sentral ng Pilpinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno said affirmation of the country’s investment grade credit ratings is already a plus despite the economic hit from the global pandemic. “Amid widespread downgrades of credit ratings of many economies globally, the affirmation… Read More
BSP notes rise of financial crimes during quarantine
June 4, 2020, 8:21 pm
MANILA – The rise of digital payment transactions in the country resulted in the increase in financial crimes, with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) receiving around 100 complaints during the lockdown period alone. In a virtual briefing Thursday, Melchor Plabasan, director of the BSP’s… Read More
Over 800 small bizmen in R6 interested in DTI financing
June 4, 2020, 7:13 pm
ILOILO CITY – More than 800 small and micro enterprises in Western Visayas have signified their interests to avail of the financing program of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) amid this coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. DTI, through Small Business (SB) Corporation - an… Read More
Inflation rate sustains downtrend: Diokno
June 4, 2020, 7:01 pm
MANILA – The rate of price increases in the Philippines continues to decelerate, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno said. “Inflation continues on its downward path,” Diokno told journalists in a Viber message Thursday. He, however, did not elaborate. The Philippine… Read More
Stocks, peso sustain gains on risk-on sentiments
June 4, 2020, 6:57 pm
MANILA – Lesser-than-expected payroll cuts in the US last May further boosted investors’ sentiment and sustained the rise of the local equities and the peso Thursday. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) increased for the seventh consecutive day after a jump of 4.35 percent, or 271.84… Read More
2 Luzon power plants shut down on June 4
June 4, 2020, 5:16 pm
MANILA – Two power plants in Luzon with dependable capacity of 726 megawatts (MW) went offline Thursday due to forced outages that made the Department of Energy (DOE) place the Luzon grid on ‘yellow alert’. Data from DOE show that the 382-MW Team Energy Pagbilao Coal Unit 2 was forced to… Read More
PHL, World Bank sign $500-M loan pact on Covid-19 relief
June 4, 2020, 4:54 pm
MANILA – The Philippines has signed a USD500-million loan accord with the World Bank that aims to support the government’s ongoing efforts to ease the social and economic impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak on poor households and workers of micro, small and medium… Read More
Luzon grid under yellow alert: DOE
June 4, 2020, 2:45 pm
MANILA – The Department of Energy (DOE) has placed the Luzon grid under “yellow alert” until 3 p.m. Thursday. The DOE said the grid’s reserve power declined following forced outages and the restriction of supply in the Malampaya natural gas field. The department has forecasted sufficient… Read More
EU: Unemployment rate rises to 6.6% in April
June 4, 2020, 8:59 am
ANKARA – Unemployment in the EU was 6.6% in April, the bloc's statistical office announced Wednesday. April figure was up from 6.4% in the previous month, while it fell from 6.8% in the same month last year, Eurostat said. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate stood at 7.3% in the euro area, up from… Read More
Life insurance, mutual firm remains optimistic on '20 biz
June 3, 2020, 9:31 pm
MANILA – The chief of Filipino-owned Insular Life (InLife), a life insurance and a mutual company, said its 2020 business plans look unrealistic now because of the impact of the global pandemic but remains optimistic as it strengthens its digital services. In a virtual briefing Wednesday,… Read More
DOF serious on plan to slap VAT on digital services
June 3, 2020, 8:17 pm
MANILA – The Department of Finance (DOF) is studying how to collect value-added tax (VAT) from local and cross-border digital transactions parallel to its neighbors in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). This, as the US is reportedly investigating the digital services tax of the… Read More
Brent oil surpasses $40 a barrel after collapse of OPEC+ deal
June 3, 2020, 8:13 pm
MOSCOW – The price of the futures contract for Brent crude oil with August delivery on London’s ICE increased by 1.31 percent and reached USD40.09 per barrel on Wednesday. The last time oil of this grade was worth more than USD40 per barrel on March 6, when OPEC+ countries could not agree to… Read More
Shares, peso improve on risk-on sentiments
June 3, 2020, 7:10 pm
MANILA – Risk-on sentiments sustained the rise of the local main equities index Wednesday and these also benefited the local currency. The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) rallied for the sixth consecutive day and ended the trade at 6,245.65 points, up by 3.66 percent or 220.48… Read More
ECCP cites ways to help health care firms amid pandemic
June 3, 2020, 6:46 pm
MANILA – The European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) has urged the government to explore sustainable approaches to help health care companies in the country in their operations amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the ECCP… Read More
