THE DEPARTMENT of Energy (DoE) said that it is set to finalize this week a department circular on how energy efficiency (EE) projects will be endorsed to the Board of Investments (BoI) for fiscal incentives.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte’s decision to lower the tariffs on pork imports will not only deal severe damage to the hog industry competing with the imports, but also deprive the government of much-needed revenue, Senator Panfilo M. Lacson said.

FOREIGN LOANS availed of by the government to finance its pandemic containment rose to $15.493 billion as of April 8, mainly due to external debt taken on for the mass vaccination program, the Finance department said.

THE ECONOMY is expected to post another contraction of minus 1.5% in the second quarter after the reimposition of the strictest lockdown settings, threatening the likely gains from the first three months of the year, Pantheon Macroeconomics said.

THE LABOR department said Monday that it recorded over 15,000 displaced workers in Metro Manila since March 22, including those who were retrenched during the reimposition of the strictest lockdown settings in the weeks leading up to April 11.

On March 31, 2021, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) 14-2021 which outlines the new procedures for availing of relief from double taxation under relevant tax treaties on all items of income derived by nonresident taxpayers from Philippine sources.

THE TOURISM department is set to present a proposal to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for airlines to adopt a platform developed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) that will enable passengers to digitally manage their travel documents and share their test and vaccination results.

THE GOVERNMENT needs to limit lockdowns to defined high-risk areas only and ensure smooth delivery of goods and services to minimize the impact on the economy, the Department of Finance (DoF) said.

GLOBAL RENEWABLE generating capacity grew 10% last year to around 2,799 gigawatts (GW) despite the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

THE DEPARTMENT of Transportation (DoTr) said it recently endorsed a project proposal to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) for the construction of a cable transit system between the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 2’s Santolan Station in Marikina City to Barangay Rosario in Pasig City.

THE INTELLECTUAL property office has partnered with the Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) to develop site blocking measures for pirated content.

A long period of uncertainty was ended after President Rodrigo R. Duterte signed Republic Act No. 11534, known as the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act on March 26.