Pickup Coffee launches frappes, rewards club

August 7, 2025 | 12:03 am

Has expanded its reach to Mexico

PICKUP COFFEE, the prolific Filipino coffee chain known for its reasonably priced offerings, officially unveiled a new line of beverages.

They now have eight frappuccinos on their menu: Brown Sugar Coffee Jelly, Cafe Mocha, Caramel, Kape Kastila (Spanish Latte), Matcha, Oreo, Triple Choco Chip, and White Mocha.

The chain also launched a rewards program, the Pickup Club, which can be found on its digital app. It offers discounts, anniversary treats, and delivery deals.

“In just three years, Pickup Coffee has grown from a bold idea to something so much bigger than we ever imagined. Today, we’re proud to say that we have over 400 stores nationwide,” said Francis Flores, Pickup Coffee’s country chief executive officer and president, at the launch on July 30 in Parañaque City.

“It’s very inspiring that a local, proudly Filipino brand has this nationwide reach, and we’re continuously growing. Actually, the past few months, we’ve been opening 20 stores every month.”

Pickup Coffee, best known for serving its beverages from food trucks, opened its first concept café, Pickup Prime, in SM Seaside in Cebu City last month. Mr. Flores said that it features “a sleek design with exclusive coffee creations.”

The second Pickup Prime store will be located in Vertis North, Quezon City, he said.

GOING ABROAD
Another milestone that the Filipino coffee chain has achieved is its international expansion — it has opened 40 stalls in Mexico. “That was our test market. We did some studies and saw that they have a similar population [to the Philippines’],” he explained.

There are 132 million people in Mexico, compared to the Philippines at about 116 million.

Mr. Flores said that Mexicans are also even more addicted to coffee, boasting 900 Starbucks branches while the Philippines has 400. “We’re the only value player there for the young market which questions why coffee is so expensive — the same proposition as here,” he said.

As for growth within the country, he explained that Filipinos can expect “a continuous presence from the brand,” in terms of their latest marketing campaign “Feel the Pickup,” and expansion across the archipelago.

Pickup Coffee’s new frappuccino line, with drinks starting at P99, is available in all stores nationwide. — Brontë H. Lacsamana

What are VPNs and will they threaten online safety?

August 7, 2025 | 12:03 am

Cybersecurity — STOCK PHOTO | Image from Freepik

APPS that disguise a user’s location have surged in popularity after the UK introduced age-verification rules as part of its Online Safety Act.

The new restrictions, which went into effect in late July and aim to prevent children from accessing harmful material on the internet, require “age assurance” systems to be implemented across thousands of websites that contain adults-only content. These include pornography sites, dating apps and social media platforms such as Reddit and TikTok.

But it seems that many Britons are reticent to hand over a credit card number or other identification credentials to prove they’re over the age of 18, and are instead opting to use a “virtual private network” (VPN) to make it look like they’re in a different country. As of Aug. 4, VPNs comprised four of the top 10 most downloaded free apps on Apple, Inc.’s App Store in the UK.

VPNs aren’t just a challenge for the UK’s ambitious new effort to govern the internet and keep children safe. As regulators around the world pass rules aimed at reining in access to content on the web — whether to protect kids from harmful posts, suppress speech or restrict access to social media — users are rushing to find tools to subvert such controls.

WHAT IS A VPN?
Whenever you use the internet, your connection is assigned a unique set of numbers called an Internet Protocol (IP) address.

A VPN is basically a digital mask that disguises that IP address. It’s a piece of software that hides what you’re looking at online and where you’re looking from. It does so by routing your internet traffic through an encrypted “tunnel” to the VPN provider’s servers elsewhere in the world.

If you’re browsing the web in London, for example, a VPN can make it appear to an internet service provider and government authorities that you’re surfing online from Barcelona. If someone were to intercept your internet traffic, it would appear as unreadable encrypted code.

WHY DO PEOPLE USE VPNS?
The idea of VPNs emerged three decades ago as a way for employees to log into their office networks remotely over a secure connection. VPNs have gained traction as a tool for privacy protection as people can avoid being tracked by websites and apps for targeted advertising.

People looking for ways to skirt the rules of the internet have found other uses for VPNs. These services can enable access to “geoblocked” content that isn’t available in a user’s home country, such as a show on streaming platform Netflix or a live sports event where the broadcasting rights belong to an overseas network.

In places with harsher censorship and surveillance regimes, such as China and Russia, VPNs have taken off as a means of bypassing government firewalls. Hackers also employ VPNs to conceal their identities.

Several companies, such as Lithuania’s NordSec BV, have turned VPNs into lucrative businesses, charging a subscription fee to companies that want to improve their cybersecurity or consumers trying to avoid ad-trackers or prying eyes.

HOW POPULAR ARE VPNS?
Interest in VPNs tends to rise after governments move to restrict access to content on the web.

The UK’s rules on age verification commenced on July 25 and triggered a dramatic spike in sign-ups for VPN services in the country. On July 27, sign-ups were almost 2,000% higher than the daily average over the 28 days prior to the new rules being in force, according to Top10VPN, a global VPN monitoring platform.

Swiss VPN provider Proton VPN said that it experienced an 1,800% increase in daily sign-ups from UK-based users, on average, in the six days following the implementation of the age checks.

The VPN momentum in the UK has outpaced recent upticks in activity elsewhere spurred by other governments’ rule changes.

In Iran, Top10VPN data indicates VPN demand surged by as much as 707% above average after the government restricted internet access in an attempt to blunt the impact of cyberattacks during the June conflict with Israel.

And when age-verification laws for adult websites kicked into effect in France in June, VPN demand peaked at 570% above normal levels, according to Top10VPN.

ARE VPNS LEGAL?
VPNs are legal in most parts of the world when used for legitimate purposes — for example, by workers connecting remotely to a corporate network, or as an additional layer of security to protect payment information when shopping online.

In jurisdictions where VPNs are allowed, law enforcement agencies have moved to shut services down if they enable criminal activity. In 2022, a joint operation by 10 countries, including Germany, the US and UK, seized the servers of VPNLab.net after an investigation found the network was being used to support the deployment of ransomware and other cybercrime.

Some countries have banned VPNs outright, including Turkmenistan, North Korea and Iraq. Others have restricted their use, requiring VPNs to block certain content, such as in Russia, or only allow access to officially authorized VPN apps that may be monitored by authorities. In China, for instance, VPNs must be approved by the government.

VPNs are sometimes subject to temporary constraints on their usage during what a government deems a crisis.

CAN VPN USERS BE IDENTIFIED?
Although VPNs enhance privacy significantly, users can still be tracked.

“Subpar” VPNs may make a user’s real IP address visible to websites, according to Surfshark, a VPN and antivirus software provider owned by Nord Security. Companies that require users to log in will also have records of their customers’ activity while they’re logged into their accounts.

Government and law enforcement agencies may request access to logs of VPN users’ online activity, although many VPN providers say they don’t keep such data.

Even if a VPN user isn’t identified, a number of websites can detect that a VPN is being used and block the traffic. Websites that want to stop users from breaking local laws or enforce geographic restrictions can identify traffic coming from known VPN IP addresses. They might also look for signs of unusual activity, such as a single IP address generating a high amount of traffic, or traffic coming at odd hours for the location.

And while traffic is encrypted in the VPN tunnel, the information outside of it, such as data stored on a user’s device, is not.

COULD VPNS UNDERMINE THE UK’S ONLINE SAFETY ACT?
The Online Safety Act, which was passed in 2023 and is being rolled out in phases, puts the onus on websites to enforce age checks, not on users to comply. Platforms that fail to implement age-verification measures risk penalties of up to £18 million ($24 million) or 10% of their global revenue, whichever is greater.

But even if age assurance systems are in place, children and teenagers could just use VPNs to circumvent the restrictions, particularly as many VPN apps are free or offer cheap subscriptions. Adults may also use this workaround out of fear that hackers could steal the personal data they submit to verify their date of birth.

VPN apps are legal to download and use in the UK and there aren’t currently any proposals to curtail them. Some UK lawmakers have previously suggested that Ofcom, the media regulator, should investigate the effect of VPNs.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has said that “platforms have a clear responsibility to prevent children from bypassing safety protections. This includes blocking content that promotes VPNs or other workarounds specifically aimed at young users.”

Early data suggests that VPNs haven’t completely neutralized the Online Safety Act’s new age requirements. In the initial days after the rules came into force, the government said there were an additional 5 million age checks on a daily basis, citing data from trade body the Age Verification Providers Association. — Bloomberg

MPIC core income rose 20% to P15B on strong utilities, toll roads — Pangilinan

August 7, 2025 | 12:03 am

PANGILINAN-LED Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) said its consolidated core net income rose by 20% to P15 billion for the first semester, citing “meaningful contributions” from its energy, water, and toll road units.

“We’ve seen meaningful contributions from power, water, and toll roads sectors that are fundamental to the country’s development,” MPIC Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said in a statement on Wednesday.

The company recorded better financial and operational performance across all its portfolio businesses, MPIC said, adding that this growth drove an 18% increase in contributions from operations to P17.5 billion.

“Fueled by robust growth in Meralco’s power generation business, the implementation of higher tariffs at Maynilad, and rising patient volumes across the Metro Pacific Hospitals network,” MPIC said.

Among MPIC’s core businesses, its power utility unit Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) accounted for the largest share of its operating net income at P11.2 billion, followed by contributions from Maynilad Water Services, Inc. at P3.8 billion and Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) at P3.3 billion.

Meralco’s revenue increase was mainly due to higher pass-through charges, increased distribution utility volumes, and retail electricity sales, the company said, adding that improved power generation revenues from the reserve market and enhanced plant availability also lifted MPIC’s overall income.

Toll revenues rose by 18% to P18.1 billion for the first semester, mainly due to toll rate increases and traffic growth in the country. MPTC’s core net income went up by 6% to P3.5 billion, which it attributed to the increase in shareholding in NLEX Corp. and partly offset by higher financing costs.

MPTC, the company’s tollway arm, recorded average daily traffic of 722,018, marking 4% growth across all its toll road networks in the Philippines.

Its units in Vietnam recorded average daily vehicle entries of 74,374, down by 5%, while its Indonesia network remained flat at more than one million.

This year, MPIC is allocating up to P116 billion in capital expenditures to fund expansions and developments in its power, toll roads, and water businesses.

MPIC is also focusing on further investments in key segments such as energy, food security, and inclusive infrastructure, Mr. Pangilinan said.

MPIC is one of the three key Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., alongside Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., holds a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Ashley Erika O. Jose

Philippine Labor Force Situation

August 7, 2025 | 12:03 am

PHILIPPINE unemployment eased to 3.7% in June, as more Filipinos found job opportunities during the month, according to the local statistics agency. Read the full story.

Declining inflation and challenges for the economic team

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

This week saw a number of good reports in public finance and price stabilization published in BusinessWorld: “Government rightsizing bill signed into law” (Aug. 5), “DBM reluctant to reenact ‘most corrupt’ 2025 budget” (Aug. 5), “Philippine wholesale price growth eases to 3% in June” (Aug. 5), “Stocks go up as inflation cools to near 6-year low” (Aug. 5), “Inflation cools further in July to 0.9%” (Aug. 6), “Bank lending jumps to four-month high in June” (Aug. 6).

The “Government Optimization Act,” RA 12231, formerly called the National Government Rightsizing Program, is a long-overdue piece of legislation because the expenditure side of the budget remains the bigger problem than the revenue side, which is why our annual budget deficit and public borrowings remain high — at least P1.5 trillion a year. There is unnecessary redundancy in the bureaucracy that contributes to ever-rising public spending.

Congress and the President should have opted for a large reduction in National Government personnel as programs and personnel in local governments keep expanding too. But the President opted for optimizing the services of those who are already hired. Which should imply that new hires should be kept to a minimum.

Perhaps the biggest positive economic news this year, so far, is the low inflation rate of only 0.9% for July 2025, just a notch higher than the 0.8% in October 2019 and the 0.7% in April 2016.

We went from having the highest inflation rate in East Asia in 2023 at 6%, to 3.2% in 2024, and now it is on the way to possibly 1.8% this year. In contrast, countries in North and South America and Europe have had inflation rates above 2% this year (see table).

Accompanying the State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. last week, the Department of Finance (DoF) released a statement enumerating some economics positives achieved by the administration. It said that, 1. the Philippines is among the fastest-growing economies in Asia; 2. labor force participation is at an all-time high; 3. prices remain stable, especially for low-income households; 4. the Philippines has achieved the highest revenue effort in 27 years, on track with fiscal consolidation; 5. the deficit and debt remain at manageable and sustainable levels; 6. concessional, strategic, and transparent financing for the Build Better More Program; 7. the Philippines sustained high credit ratings, proof of strong investor confidence; and, 8. laws were passed to boost investments, create jobs, and generate revenues.

I concur with the DoF assessment, but I will add that the national spending side needs more control because we need to create a fiscal buffer in case of another economic and health calamity which will require another round of high borrowings.

So far, the economic team is gaining headway to build momentum for the next three years, the second half of the Marcos Jr. administration. New challenges for them, I believe, are the following:

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto has to produce more revenue from the Bureau of Customs, from the mandatory remittances of government corporations, and from the privatization of government assets and enterprises. The CBK hydro plant privatization proceeds would be a good start next year.

Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman has to operationalize the Government Optimization law and Open Government Partnership (OGP) to have a leaner bureaucracy and more transparent budgeting and monitoring.

Economics Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan has to work closely with the infrastructure team so that economic planning and public spending can deliver more tangible and physical results, not just social services that tend to go on forever and lead to more state-dependence instead of self-reliance by the people.

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. Research Consultancy Services, and Minimal Government Thinkers. He is an international fellow of the Tholos Foundation.

minimalgovernment@gmail.com

Term deposit yields mixed on weak demand due to ongoing RTB offer

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

YIELDS on the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) term deposits were mixed on Wednesday, with the one-week tenor going undersubscribed for a second straight week as the government’s ongoing retail Treasury bond (RTB) offer likely cornered some of the market’s excess liquidity.

The central bank’s term deposit facility (TDF) fetched bids amounting to P103.771 billion, higher than the P100 billion placed on the auction block and the P88.578 billion for the same volume offered a week earlier. However, the BSP only awarded P88.846 billion in papers as the one-week deposits were undersubscribed.

Broken down, tenders for the seven-day term deposits stood at only P38.846 billion, lower than the P50 billion placed on the auction block but higher than the P31.69 billion in bids seen last week for the same offer volume. The BSP accepted all the submitted bids for the tenor.

Accepted yields were from 5.23% to 5.265%, unchanged from the margin seen the week prior. However, the weighted average accepted rate for the one-week deposits inched up by 0.28 basis point (bp) to 5.2549% from 5.2521% previously.

Meanwhile, the 14-day papers attracted P64.925 billion in bids, well above the P50 billion auctioned off by the BSP and the P56.888 billion in tenders fetched last week for the same offer volume. The central bank fully awarded P50 billion in two-week deposits.

Banks asked for yields ranging from 5.265% to 5.305%, narrower than the 5.25% to 5.33% margin seen last week. This caused the average rate of the 14-day deposits to decline by 1.08 bps to 5.2901% from 5.3009% previously.

The BSP has not auctioned off 28-day term deposits for nearly five years to give way to its weekly offerings of securities with the same tenor.

Both the TDF and BSP bills are used by the central bank to mop up excess liquidity in the financial system and to better guide market rates towards the policy rate.

“The BSP TDF auction yields were mixed after being slightly lower for most weeks over the past three months in view of the ongoing RTB offering that could be siphoning some of the excess liquidity in the financial system,” Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

The National Government raised an initial P210 billion via its latest RTB offering at the rate-setting auction held on Tuesday, well above the P30-billion program.

The public offer period for the five-year retail bonds that have a coupon rate of 6% will run until Aug. 15, unless closed earlier by the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr). Settlement is on Aug. 20.

Mr. Ricafort added that TDF yields were little changed following the release of data showing that Philippine inflation slowed to 0.9% in July that could justify further monetary easing by the BSP, with a third straight rate cut likely as early as this month.

Headline inflation eased to 0.9% in July from 1.4% in June and the 4.4% clip in the same month a year ago, the government reported on Tuesday.

This was the lowest consumer price index (CPI) in nearly six years or since the 0.6% print posted in October 2019. It also marked the fifth straight month that inflation settled below the central bank’s 2-4% target range.

The July print was within the BSP’s 0.5%-1.3% forecast for the month, but below the 1.2% median estimate yielded in a BusinessWorld poll of 17 analysts conducted last week.

For the first seven months of the year, the CPI averaged 1.7%, a tad higher than the BSP’s 1.6% full-year forecast.

BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr. told Bloomberg on Tuesday that the benign July inflation reading makes a rate cut “more likely” at the Monetary Board’s Aug. 28 meeting.

“Something unexpected would have to happen for us not to cut rates,” Mr. Remolona said. That will likely be followed by another reduction in the fourth quarter, the governor said.

After this month’s review, the Monetary Board’s remaining meetings for this year are scheduled for Oct. 9 and Dec. 11.

With inflation this year likely to average below the central bank’s 2-4% goal and within that range in 2026, it gives the BSP leeway to further lower borrowing costs “as long as the numbers look good, inflation remains low and the economy can still afford” more easing, he said.

“You can still cut some more,” the governor said, while adding that any decision now on the central bank’s rate path would be premature. “There’s so many things going on globally. There’s less certainty about the global economy.”

The Monetary Board has slashed benchmark borrowing costs by a total of 50 bps this year via two consecutive 25-bp cuts in April and June, with the policy rate now at 5.25%. This brought cumulative reductions since August 2024 to 125 bps. — Katherine K. Chan with Bloomberg

Dining In/Out (08/07/25)

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

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Oatside brings down prices

OATSIDE has lowered its suggested retail prices (SRP) by as much as 25% with the goal of making healthy oat milk available to more people. Consumers can now find the one-liter Barista Blend at P120 SRP, and the 200-mL Original variant at P29 SRP in supermarkets or P34 SRP in convenience stores. The price drop has taken effect across all major retailers nationwide. “The oat milk category in the past has had relatively higher prices. As we have scaled over the last three years, we’ve worked hard to find efficiencies through our supply chain and we are passing these savings on to consumers as part of our mission to make oat milk a staple in more households,” said Benedict Lim, founder and chief executive officer of Oatside, in a statement. “While the prices are new, there has been no change to our product formula and Oatside has the same creamy, malty taste you’re used to, made with roasted oats and our proprietary enzyme extraction process. Oatside’s oat milks are lower in sugar, lactose-free, contain no cholesterol, and have similar levels of calcium as dairy milk per serving.” The price reductions are effective across major supermarkets, groceries, and convenience stores nationwide. For more information, visit the website at https://oatside.com.

Discovery Samal introduces The Bistro

DISCOVERY SAMAL opens The Bistro, a refined dining concept nestled beside its villa pool. The Bistro’s menu features globally inspired cuisine and island freshness, offering selections such as Taste of Italy for its pasta selections, Gourmet Plates for the mains, Curated Meats for the steak selection, and Sweet Endings for the desserts. Starters include USDA Prime Beef Carpaccio or Gratinated Angel Hair Scallops. The Taste of Italy selection highlights options such as the Classic Cheese Wheel Carbonara or Cream Cheese and Portobello Lasagna, while the Gourmet Plates present items such as Surf n Turf (Lobster Tail Thermidor with USDA Prime Tenderloin), Sous Vide Pork Chop, Herb Cruster Rack of Lamb, or Herb and Feta Chicken Roulade. The Curated Meats selection features grilled steaks and slow-roasted specialties. Desserts range from Rose Water Chocolate Mousse, Malagos Chocolate Lava Cake, Flaming Baked Alaska, and Classic Crepe Suzette. The Bistro also boasts a wide wine selection. The Bistro at Discovery Samal is open daily for lunch from noon to 2 p.m. and dinner from 6 to 10 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome, but reservations are recommended. For more information, visit www.discoverysamal.com/dining/the-bistro.

Kenny Rogers presents new Chipotle Double Dippers

KENNY ROGERS Roasters is making double-dipping acceptable with its new creation: Chipotle Double Dippers — dip once for flavor, dip twice for crunch. This offering brings together flavor and texture. The Chipotle Double Dippers Roast Whole Roasted Chicken is marinated in chipotle spices, served with salsa and crunchy BBQ sprinkles for added flavor and crunch. It’s also available as the Chipotle Double Dippers Solo B (chicken, served with salsa and crunchy BBQ sprinkles, two side dishes, a muffin, and rice), Chipotle Double Dippers Ribs, and Chipotle Double Dippers Salsa and Sprinkles (tomato-based salsa made with garlic and herbs paired with crunchy sprinkles). The Chipotle Double Dippers will be available for dine-in, take-out, or delivery. Customers can order online at www.kennysrogersdelivery.com.ph, via Grab Food, Food Panda, or by calling the hotline: 8-555-9000.

OpenAI releases open-weight reasoning language models optimized to run on laptops

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

SAN FRANCISCO — OpenAI said on Tuesday it has released two open-weight language models that excel in advanced reasoning and are optimized to run on laptops with performance levels similar to its smaller proprietary reasoning models.

An open-weight language model’s trained parameters or weights are publicly accessible, which can be used by developers to analyze and fine-tune the model for specific tasks without requiring original training data.

“One of the things that is unique about open models is that people can run them locally. People can run them behind their own firewall, on their own infrastructure,” OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman said in a press briefing.

Open-weight language models are different from open-source models, which provide access to the complete source code, training data and methodologies.

Separately, Amazon announced OpenAI’s open-weight models are now available on its Bedrock generative artificial intelligence (AI) marketplace in Amazon Web Services (AWS). It marks the first time an OpenAI model has been offered on Bedrock, said Atul Deo, Bedrock’s director of product.

“OpenAI has been developing great models and we believe that these models are going to be great open-source options, or open-weight model options for customers,” said Mr. Deo, in an interview. He declined to discuss any contractual arrangements between AWS and OpenAI.

Amazon shares tumbled last week after the company reported slowing growth in its AWS unit, particularly compared with rivals.

The landscape of open-weight and open-source AI models has been highly contested this year. For a time, Meta’s Llama models were considered the best, but that changed earlier this year when China’s DeepSeek released a powerful and cost-effective reasoning model, while Meta struggled to deliver Llama 4.

The two new OpenAI models are the first open models OpenAI has released since GPT-2, which was released in 2019.

OpenAI’s larger model, gpt-oss-120b, can run on a single GPU, and the second, gpt-oss-20b, is small enough to run directly on a personal computer, the company said.

OpenAI said the models have similar performance to its proprietary reasoning models called o3-mini and o4-mini, and especially excel at coding, competition math and health-related queries.

The models were trained on a text-only dataset which in addition to general knowledge, focused on science, math and coding knowledge. OpenAI did not release benchmarks comparing the open-weight models to competitors’ models such as the DeepSeek-R1 model.

Microsoft-backed OpenAI, currently valued at $300 billion, is currently raising up to $40 billion in a new funding round led by Softbank Group. — Reuters

PXP draws $600,000 loan from Philex Mining, Kirtman

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

UPSTREAM oil and gas firm PXP Energy Corp. has tapped a $600,000 (P34.6 million) loan from Philex Mining Corp. and Kirtman Ltd., both shareholders of the company, to finance its working capital.

PXP borrowed $300,000 each from Philex and Kirtman, with the loan carrying an interest rate of LIBOR plus a 3.5% margin per annum, the Pangilinan-led firm said in a stock exchange disclosure on Wednesday.

“The proceeds of these notes will be used to partially fund the group’s working capital at least during the next 12 months,” the company said.

Philex, another Pangilinan-led firm, holds a 30.4% interest in PXP.

For the second quarter, PXP posted a wider attributable net loss of P13.37 million, compared with P6.55 million in the same period last year, amid lower revenues and higher expenses.

Petroleum revenues declined by 22.9% to P12.82 million, while costs and expenses rose by 14.6% to P25.21 million.

Last week, PXP said it subscribed to an additional 131.56 million ordinary shares in Canada-based FEC Resources, Inc., effectively raising its stake to 81.25% from 78.39%.

FEC holds a 6.8% interest in Forum Energy Ltd. (FEL), the designated operator of Service Contract 72 Recto Bank, an offshore petroleum license located off the western coast of Palawan in the West Philippine Sea.

At the local bourse on Wednesday, shares of the company declined by 0.42% to P2.35 apiece. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

Job Gains by Industry

August 7, 2025 | 12:02 am

PHILIPPINE unemployment eased to 3.7% in June, as more Filipinos found job opportunities during the month, according to the local statistics agency. Read the full story.

The doctor is in

August 7, 2025 | 12:01 am

smiling-asian-doctor-nurse-writing-down-clipboard-standing-medical-uniform-blue-backgroun — STOCK PHOTO | Image by Benzoix from Freepik

IT CAN be just a recurring headache that you complain about occasionally. Somebody tired of this griping may suggest — why don’t you see a doctor?

Which doctor to see is determined by referrals from friends including relatives in the medical profession. The specialization is supposed to match the discomfort being experienced — I have this sense of vertigo every time I wake up and check my bank deposit balance online.

Seeing a doctor for consultation is seldom time-bound the way a business meeting or even a social gathering usually is. A confirmed appointment to see the doctor needs to be given some leeway in terms of precision. A one-hour delay from the expected medical consultation’s end is routine. So, it’s best not to schedule anything else two hours after the expected end of the visit.

The doctor does not have full control of his schedule, except perhaps when planning for his vacation out of the country. Who can predict when some patient will need his services immediately or how long that will take? (Can you just come back on Thursday?)

Only doctors involved in optional procedures like a dental implant or stem cell treatment can have a more predictable schedule. Also, doctors in demand usually hold clinic hours in different hospitals and at different days and times. They may be in one of the designated venues, diagnosing a difficult case which can overlap with the start time of the next clinic stop.

The first-time consultation with a doctor seldom connotes urgency. So, queueing protocols follow the same one for taxis and airport check-ins, using the first-come-first-served model, including those who arrive before the actual clinic hours and log in, before taking their breakfast downstairs.

When the secretary takes your weight, height, and blood pressure, you are sure to be next in line. Is the blood pressure above normal? It must be the result of the “white coat syndrome.” This psychological anxiety comes from the mere sight of a doctor and what possible diagnosis he will render. The worst-case scenarios are always at the top of the mind.

The time speeds up as soon as the receptionist calls out your name — the doctor will see you now. Here at last is the person one waited to see.

There is no time for small talk on the traffic or distant relatives. The doctor checks the blood pressure taken by the secretary. Then it’s straight to the questions about the complaint and how long this has been going on. There follows the obligatory stethoscope procedure. (Breathe deeply. Hold it. Exhale.)

A seemingly healthy individual, walking on his own and not being wheeled in with a trailing dextrose bottle, but still needing to see a medical specialist, must be asked what his problem is. The interview, which is what the initial consultation is all about, delves on complaints, observed disorders, and particular pains that recur.

Maybe the doctor asks the patient to stand up for a cursory physical examination or even lie down on a bed — please pull your pants up. More questions and answers follow. A possible scenario is discussed on ailments and procedures that will need to be considered. And then, like a power point presentation, the last slide calls for “next steps.” These are written down for the patient or his companion to handle.

There are instructions given on medicines and tests that need to be taken to have a proper diagnosis of the ailment. A list is provided without the corresponding costs. These tests may include blood sampling, MRI, maybe a treadmill session.

Are you sleeping well? Do you snore? (The wife is asked for her inputs.) There may be a sleep test that may indicate an undiscovered case of sleep apnea. The need for equipment and medication may follow.

The patient then goes out to pay the consultation fee to the receptionist, net of the senior discount. She then calls for the next one in line — the doctor will see you now.

On the second visit, this time with the test results in hand, comes the dreaded comment from the doctor — I have some good news and bad news. (Which one do you want to hear first?)

Tony Samson is chairman and CEO of TOUCH xda

ar.samson@yahoo.com

Peso up on BSP intervention signals

August 7, 2025 | 12:01 am

THE PESO appreciated against the dollar on Wednesday after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) chief said they would actively intervene in the foreign exchange market to manage sharp swings in the currency.

The local unit closed at P57.475 per dollar, strengthening by 15.5 centavos from its P57.63 finish on Tuesday, Bankers Association of the Philippines data showed.

The peso opened Wednesday’s session a tad stronger at P57.60 against the dollar. Its worst showing was at P57.78, while its intraday best was at P57.41 against the greenback.

Dollars exchanged climbed to $2.49 billion on Wednesday from $2.11 billion on Tuesday.

The local unit rebounded against the dollar after BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona, Jr. said the central bank would intervene more forcefully in the market during extended periods of peso weakness due to its effect on inflation, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

“The dollar-peso closed lower as the market responded to the BSP governor’s comment saying the central bank will intervene more forcefully on peso weakness,” a trader likewise said in a phone interview.

For Thursday, the trader sees the peso moving between P57.20 and P57.60 per dollar, while Mr. Ricafort expects it to range from P57.35 to P57.65.

Mr. Remolona told Bloomberg on Tuesday that the BSP is intervening more forcefully during periods of extended peso weakness as part of a new strategy, gradually moving away from day-to-day intervention.

The BSP adopted a new formula that determines the magnitude of peso losses that require stronger intervention to curb price pressures, Mr. Remolona said in an interview Tuesday. He declined to elaborate on the formula.

The BSP used to intervene to smoothen day-to-day volatility, the BSP chief said. “We now understand there are thresholds: a depreciation of the peso doesn’t cause inflation to go up until it’s enough of a depreciation,” he said.

The governor also said “there’s a risk” of the local currency dropping again to the record low of P59 per dollar given the peso’s volatility though he said authorities aren’t worried about specific levels. — A.M.C. Sy with Bloomberg