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Pneumonia cases on the rise, DOH urges vulnerable groups to keep masks on
Vulnerable groups are advised to “please be comfortable to still wear masks when outdoors.” Health Assistant Secretary Beverly Ho said this in the wake of an an almost 50-percent uptick in the number of confirmed pneumonia cases in the country in the first 10 months of the year. Based on the latest data from the.....»»
Factory activity hits 10-month high in November
The Philippines’ manufacturing activity continued to improve in November, expanding at the fastest pace in 10 months supported by strong demand......»»
Chikungunya cases rise 384 percent
Chikungunya cases in the country have more than tripled in the past 10 months compared to the same period last year, according to the Department of Health......»»
Pesky shipworms could become a sustainable superfood
Photo: University of PlymouthNaked Clams are saltwater mollusks that are the planet's fastest-growing bivalve, which can reach a length of 30cm in just six months. This feat they achieve by burrowing into waste wood and converting it into nutritious protein. Their growth rate could make them an ecofriendly superfood, say experts.This would mean quite a turnaround in the reputation of these creatures, also.....»»
BOP surplus widens to $3.2 billion in 10 months
The Philippines posted a balance of payments surplus of $3.2 billion from January to October amid rising remittances from overseas Filipino workers, narrowing trade deficit and higher foreign borrowings by the national government, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas......»»
MPIC core earnings rise 37 percent from January to September
Metro Pacific Investments Corp., the tollways and infrastructure conglomerate that has been re-privatized, reported a consolidated core net income of P16.2 billion in the first nine months, up 37 percent, driven by power and higher water tariff for the water concession......»»
ACEN earnings rise by 59 percent
ACEN Corp. the energy platform of the Ayala Group, grew its earnings by more than half in the nine months ending September on the back of higher revenues and gains from the sale of a stake in the Salak and Darajat geothermal plants in Indonesia......»»
Philippines gross int l reserves rise to 101.1 bln USD in October
MANILA, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' gross international reserves (GIR) rose to 101.1 billion U.S. dollars at the end of October from 98.1 billion dollars at the end of September, the Philippine central bank said Tuesday night. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the latest GIR level represents a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.5 months' worth of imports of goods and pa.....»»
Philippines gross int l reserves rise to 101.1 bln USD in October
MANILA, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines' gross international reserves (GIR) rose to 101.1 billion U.S. dollars at the end of October from 98.1 billion dollars at the end of September, the Philippine central bank said Tuesday night. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the latest GIR level represents a more than adequate external liquidity buffer equivalent to 7.5 months' worth of imports of goods and pa.....»»
Petron earnings rise 16 percent in 3 quarters
Volume improvements across major business segments fueled a strong profitability for oil giant Petron Corp. in the nine months ending September......»»
Globe profit falls 27 percent in 9 months
Mobile giant Globe Telecom Inc. earned 27 percent less in the nine months to September, mainly due to a continuous rise in expenses, particularly on general and depreciation costs......»»
Inflation likely cooled in October
Economists are anticipating a slowdown in the price hikes of essential goods and services for the month of October following two consecutive months of acceleration, which saw prices rise by 5.3 percent in August and 6.1 percent in September......»»
Factory output hits 7-month high in October
Philippine manufacturing activity in October expanded at its fastest pace in seven months as demand continued to improve, according to S&P Global......»»
Robinsons retail unit posts profit rise
Listed Gokongwei group’s Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. proved its resilience in the first nine months as it reported a core profit of P3.8 billion, up 4 percent. Net sales during the period were at P138.2 billion, which rose by 8.7 percent year-on-year. The company was able to generate growth in net sales and core net earnings despite the impact of inflation on consumption and a challenging base last year which benefited from economic reopening and election-related spending. Core net earnings exclude foreign exchange gains and losses, interest income from bonds, equity in earnings from associates, interest expense related to the Bank of Philippine Islands acquisition financing, BPI cash dividends, and others. The growth in net sales was supported by blended same store sales growth of five percent and store expansions. The core businesses supermarkets and drugstores were the main revenue growth drivers in the first nine months. These two segments accounted for almost 75 percent of Robinsons Retail’s revenues for the period. Meanwhile, a bright spot in the discretionary portfolio was the department store segment, which was able to deliver double-digit topline growth due to back-to-school and continued out-of-home activities. The company’s consolidated gross profit continued to grow faster than revenues, increasing by 9.4 percent year-on-year to P32.9 billion in the first nine months. This was enabled by improvements in category mix and higher penetration of private label brands. Meanwhile, operating income grew by 3.7 percent year-on-year to P6.1 billion. Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent company fell by 41.4 percent year-on-year to P2.6 billion until September. The decline in net income to parent was weighed by equitized losses from minority startup investments which continue to ramp up, the derecognition of Robinsons Bank’s net income under equitized earnings following the ongoing merger with the Bank of the Philippine Islands, interest expense from the acquisition financing of the BPI shares that were purchased earlier this year, and the absence of cash dividends from BPI in the third quarter of 2023. Dividends set BPI has historically paid dividends in the second and fourth quarters of each year. The expected cash dividends from BPI in the fourth quarter should fully cover for the acquisition related financing interest expense for the purchase of the BPI shares. “Our defensible business model has enabled us to continue growing and remain relevant among Filipino consumers. This is notwithstanding near-term macroeconomic challenges, particularly the impact of inflation on consumer sentiment. These headwinds are temporary, in our view, and we thus remain positive on the long-term potential of the domestic retail industry given the Philippines’ attractive demographics. We will continue to invest with a long-term view and in a sustainable manner — core strategies that we firmly believe will translate to greater stakeholder value,” Robina Gokongwei-Pe, president and CEO of Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc., said. The post Robinsons retail unit posts profit rise appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Regional culinary tilt creates opportunities for career growth
Hilton, Asia’s fastest-growing hospitality company, recently announced the winners of its South East Asia Food & Beverage Masters that saw more than 400 team members from over 40 hotels in the region participate in a series of rigorous competitions over the last seven months. Now on its sixth year, the SEA F&B Masters is open to all Hilton team members who are passionate about showcasing their skills and talent in various food and beverage disciplines. The competition’s main aim is to discover, distinguish and develop the best F&B talent across Hilton’s portfolio of properties in the region. Dipak puts the final touches on Golden Hour, one of his winning creations. Gusti Ayu Made Oktianingsih (Yudek) prepares rich javara chocolate bits for one of her award-winning recipes. Ketut Edy Suriama makes latte art for his cappuccino. Participants had to compete across three rounds: First within their hotel, followed by a sub-regional level match before earning their coveted spot in the regional finals held at Hilton Bali Resort last month. This year, 17 finalists hailing from 7 countries — Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore and the Maldives — put their culinary skills and gastronomic flair to the test across four categories, Barista, Culinary, Mixology and Pastry. Throughout each stage of the competition, all participants had to creatively feature the use of locally sourced and sustainable elements in their entries, from the use of ingredients to the visual presentations of their final creations. After an intense day-long of competitions and judging, team members from Hilton Bali, Millennium Hilton Bangkok, Hilton Amingiri Maldives Resort & Spa, and Conrad Bali emerged as winners in the Barista, Culinary, Mixology and Pastry Cup, respectively. The post Regional culinary tilt creates opportunities for career growth appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
8-month debts increase 50%
The government’s gross borrowings rose in the first eight months, Bureau of the Treasury data showed, surging by 50.48 percent to P1.58 trillion as of the end of August from P1.05 trillion a year earlier. Based on the Treasury’s latest cash operations report, gross domestic borrowings accounted for the bulk of the first eight month’s total at P1.28 trillion. Gross overseas loans, meanwhile, clocked in at P394.56 billion during the period. Gross domestic loans increased from the year earlier from P996.14 billion. Gross overseas borrowings also rose from P337.79 billion previously. Fixed-rate treasury bond issuances worth P904.76 billion made up most of the first eight months of the domestic borrowings. An additional P283.76 billion and P95.84 billion were raised through retail T-bonds and T-bills, respectively. Foreign debts rise Gross external borrowings, meanwhile, increased by 16.80 percent from P337.79 billion in August 2022 to P394.56 billion in August this year. Total borrowings in August alone reached P119.12 billion, an increase from P118.36 billion in August 2022. During the month, borrowings from local lenders slipped by 34 percent to P110.5 billion from P167.81 billion secured in the same period last year. A huge chunk of the gross domestic borrowings, at P117.37 billion, was from fixed-rate Treasury bonds at P110.23 billion. The government borrowed the remaining P7.13 billion from short-term T-bills. In terms of external debt, the Treasury increased its gross borrowings to P6.68 billion from just P1.31 billion from foreign sources last year. The entire external financing for August was made up of project loans from multilateral institutions. The post 8-month debts increase 50% appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
OFW remittances up 3 percent to $3.1 billion in August
Dollars sent home by Filipinos abroad grew almost three percent to $3.1 billion in August, as overseas workers sent more money to their families back home amid the continued rise in commodity prices, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)......»»
NEDA thumbs down further interest rate hikes
National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan on Friday rejected future increases in interest rates, saying that they could harm consumers already facing high inflation. While the economy might be able to survive additional monetary tightening from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Balisacan said in a press briefing that raising interest rates further is "not necessary." Higher interest rates require businesses and consumers to spend more money to pay off credit cards, mortgages, and auto loans. As a result, there would be less demand, driving down the cost of products and services. "If I were in the Monetary Board, I would say no," Balisacan said when asked if resuming the tightening cycle could stop the nagging inflation. Balisacan said that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has been "the most aggressive" in the area, even reaching a 16-year high of 6.25 percent, which he said is "something we should be proud of." He cautioned that doing so may harm manufacturers and consumers by raising production costs, "depressing" demand, and negatively impacting the economy. According to Balisacan, higher interest rates might strengthen the peso and increase the cost of the nation's exports. He expressed concern about this effect. "We know that raising the interest rates will hurt the economy, will hurt consumers, will hurt producers, and that also has long-term effects in succeeding 12 months," Balisacan said. Even though the 2 to 4 percent inflation target appears to be "quite a challenge," NEDA assured that the government is working on interventions to manage inflation. According to Balisacan, the economic team is still trying to meet the goal before the year ends. Balisacan is sure that holiday spending will increase the nation's gross domestic product despite the high rate of inflation. "Inflation has a negative effect on growth. On the other hand, there are positive developments. Government agencies with relatively high underspending in the first half of the year are addressing that issue. Christmas season is also around the corner. That also generates a lot of extra push. Remittances also remain stable," Balisacan said. The post NEDA thumbs down further interest rate hikes appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
BSP ready to resume monetary tightening
Monetary authorities are ready to resume policy tightening as it expects inflation to remain elevated in the coming months following the rise in prices for the second straight month in September, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas......»»
Over 13K delivery riders now have Pag-IBIG
In a span of only three months after Pag-IBIG Fund entered partnerships with the country’s top transport networks to provide better access to its membership, 13,128 delivery drivers and riders have registered as Pag-IBIG members and now enjoy the agency’s benefits. “We are very happy that a growing number of delivery riders are now part of the more than 15.6 million active members of Pag-IBIG Fund. As members of Pag-IBIG Fund, they now have secure savings and shall gain access to our affordable home loans. This is in line with our efforts to provide inclusive housing to all Filipino workers under the Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Housing or 4PH Program of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.,” said Secretary Jose Rizalino L. Acuzar, who leads the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund Board of Trustees. Earlier this year, Pag-IBIG Fund partnered with transport network and app-based courier companies Angkas, Foodpanda, Grab, Lalamove and Pick-A-Roo. With the partnerships, delivery riders are provided better access to Pag-IBIG Fund membership to allow them to enjoy the agency’s benefits that include its Regular and MP2 Savings, short-term cash loans, affordable home loans and the Pag-IBIG Loyalty Card Plus. Pag-IBIG Fund Chief Executive Officer Marilene C. Acosta, meanwhile, expects that the number of delivery riders who shall become Pag-IBIG Fund members will continue to rise, especially with the agency’s ongoing Pag-IBIG Asenso Rider Raffle Promo, a special raffle promo for delivery riders. “We remain committed to our mandate of bringing the benefits of Pag-IBIG Fund membership to more Filipino workers. This includes our delivery riders, whose service have become vital in our daily lives. That is why in addition to bringing them better access to Pag-IBIG Fund membership, we are also providing our delivery riders the opportunity to win special prizes to help them with their livelihood with the Pag-IBIG Asenso Rider Raffle Promo. All these are among the many ways how we bring our Lingkod Pag-IBIG Brand of Service -- "Tapat na Serbisyo, Mula sa Puso" -- to our members,” Acosta added. The post Over 13K delivery riders now have Pag-IBIG appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»