Daily Archives: December 8, 2019 | 11:40 pm

THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) has issued an order asserting its authority to acquire imported goods whose value is underdeclared by at least 30%.

THE Philippine nickel industry expects expanded production next year to fill the gap left by Indonesia’s nickel ore export ban to between 40 and 50 million wet metric tons (WMT) of ore, possibly accompanied by higher prices due to supply concerns.

DAVAO CITY -- The P550-million Malalag Port Development Project in Davao del Sur has been completed, upgrading the cargo facility for the south of the Davao Region, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said over the weekend.

A P2-billion loan from Japan is set to be signed “in the coming months” to fund earthquake resilience improvements for key bridges in Metro Manila, the Department of Finance said.

THE government pension fund said it hopes to finally reinsure public school buildings against calamities when it auctions off the reinsurance contract for the National Indemnity Insurance Fund on Wednesday.

THE Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) denied for lack of merit the appeal of Duty Free Philippines Corp. of an earlier ruling dismissing its P142.9-million tax refund claim.

THE Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said it will work to help industries better manage the transition to increased automation, including “social dialogue” which could help mitigate employment disruptions accompanying the so-called fourth industrial revolution (4IR).

This article applies to US citizens, US nationals and their employers, the latter to ensure US Federal tax compliance. “Seriously Delinquent” tax debts can cause suspension, denial, or nonrenewal of US Passports.

THE PHILIPPINES is now near surpassing its best finish in the Southeast Asian Games as it continued to add to its gold medal haul on Sunday.

AFTER SWEEPING all three of its preliminary matches in the 30^th Southeast Asian Games, the Philippine men’s national basketball team takes its campaign to a higher level as it battles Indonesia in the semifinals today at the Mall of Asia Arena.

THE COLUMBIAN Dyip selected a pair of big men in the annual Philippine Basketball Association rookie draft held on Sunday at the Robinson’s Place Manila.

IN THE 30^th Southeast Asian Games, esports is a debuting discipline, a great development for the continued growth of the sport and platform to take it to the next stage, said Razer, the official SEA Games esports sponsor.

INTERNATIONAL Boxing Federation (IBF) super flyweight champion Jerwin “Pretty Boy” Ancajas of the Philippines made it an eighth successful title defense after he defeated Chilean challenger Miguel Gonzalez by technical knockout in the sixth round of their fight in Puebla, Mexico, on Sunday (Manila time).

Eli Manning has had an extremely productive career. Since being chosen first overall in the 2004 draft, he has quarterbacked the Giants to 116 regular-season victories and, more importantly, to two successful Super Bowl runs in which he earned Most Valuable Player awards. He has nothing left to prove, as all and sundry will attest -- except, that is, to himself. Today, he will start for the first time since being benched in Week 3, and he aims to show that he still belongs in the National Football League. That he will be trekking to Lincoln Financial Field exactly a year to the day he last claimed a win serves as added motivation.

ONE of the Philippines’ central business districts has stopped giving permits to establishments that cater to workers of offshore gaming operators as it tries to curb rising criminality including prostitution in the city.

THE government of President Rodrigo R. Duterte expects to beat its anti-poverty goal of 14% by 2022 as reforms such as universal health care help more poor people, the Finance department said.

LAWMAKERS have proposed separate measures to improve the quality of education in the country.

THE Supreme Court has approved changes to both the 1997 Revised Rules of Civil Procedure and Revised Rules on Evidence.

We are ending the last quarter of the year, which is our main harvest season and when palay prices are seasonally at their lowest. Farm prices had fallen at an unprecedented rate since the 1970s during this quarter. Surely, the combined effects of the harvest season and rice import liberalization have caused the decline of palay prices and farm incomes. Have they bottomed out, or are they still falling even now in the major rice producing areas?

“PHL lags in global education survey,” read BusinessWorld’s front page banner story on Dec. 5. A one-fourth page graph showed the latest results of the education survey by Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

On the Saturday nearest May 30, Spain celebrates its Armed Forces Day with much pageantry. This year, it was celebrated in the southern city of Seville with no less than King Philip IV and Queen Letizia headlining the ceremonials.

This week sees Human Rights Day, celebrated globally every 10^th December to mark the UN General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 61 years ago. The contribution of former Filipino general-turned-diplomat, Carlos P. Romulo, in drafting and negotiating that historic document remains well known at a time when human rights face severe challenges in the Philippines and around the world.

THAT SPORTS is a unifying force and a great purveyor of any country’s heritage and cultural identity is not a matter to be debated. It is a reality. Sports is and has always been an enabler and should be harnessed for binding us closer as a nation rather than breaking us apart.