Citicore Renewable income rises 14% on higher revenue, lower costs
SAAVEDRA-LED Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC) said its net income rose by 14% to P1.15 billion in 2025, driven by higher revenue and lower costs.
Consolidated revenues grew by 3% to P5.32 billion, supported by stronger electricity sales, the company said in a statement on Monday.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased by 3% to P1.81 billion.
CREC said earnings growth was supported by a 34% increase in service fees to P325 million and a 19% decline in finance costs following refinancing initiatives.
Last year, the company energized three solar plants in Batangas and Pampanga with a combined capacity of 239 megawatts (MW), which are expected to contribute fully to its financial performance this year.
In September 2025, CREC switched on what it described as the country’s “first baseload solar power plant” through a 197-MW solar farm in Batangas, equipped with a 320-megawatt-hour battery energy storage system.
“This milestone demonstrates how innovation in renewable energy can redefine the country’s power landscape. We now have definitive proof that solar, when paired with energy storage systems, can provide a truly reliable source of energy that supports national growth,” CREC President and Chief Executive Officer Oliver Tan said.
The company said it plans to activate six more solar plants in Batangas, Negros Occidental, and Pangasinan next month, with a combined capacity of 484 MW.
CREC has earmarked about $2 billion in capital expenditures this year to fund the rollout of more than one gigawatt of solar power projects.
CREC, directly and through its subsidiaries and joint ventures, manages a portfolio spanning renewable energy generation, power project development, and retail electricity supply.
The company currently has a combined gross installed capacity of more than 500 MW from its solar facilities in the Philippines. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
OceanaGold extends Didipio mine life to 2037
OCEANAGOLD (Philippines), Inc. said the operational life of the Didipio gold and copper mine in Northern Luzon has been extended to 2037 following an updated mine plan based on recent exploration results.
In a disclosure on Monday, the listed miner said updated mineral resource estimates indicate that Didipio’s open-pit stockpiles will be exhausted by 2032, with a smaller portion of residual ore expected to support operations until 2037.
The company had previously projected the mine’s operations to end in 2035, based on its 2023 technical report.
The Didipio mine operates under a Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement with the government, under which the state receives 60% of net revenue while the company receives 40%.
OceanaGold said the Didipio mine has a combined measured and indicated ore volume of 45.2 million metric tons (MT) as of Dec. 31, including 32 MT from underground operations and 13.2 MT from open-pit stockpiles.
Measured and indicated gold resources totaled 1.34 million ounces (Moz), consisting of 1.21 Moz from underground operations and 0.12 Moz from open-pit stockpiles.
Silver resources were estimated at 2.4 Moz, while copper resources were placed at 0.16 MT.
Proved and probable reserves for the combined underground and open-pit stockpiles include 1.13 Moz of gold, 2.2 Moz of silver, and 0.13 MT of copper.
The company said the updated resource estimates provide a basis for medium- to long-term mine planning.
“While ongoing monthly, quarterly and annual reconciliation fluctuations are expected, the Mineral Resource estimates are believed to provide an acceptable basis for medium to long-term mine planning purposes,” it said.
OceanaGold said it plans to increase processing throughput to 4.3 MT per annum, the current permitted limit, by 2027.
To support the extended mine life and higher underground production, the company said it is upgrading its mining infrastructure.
“Upgrades are underway to existing infrastructure to support increased underground mining rates, including primary ventilation upgrades to support mining at depth and increased fleet requirements,” the company said.
OceanaGold said it is also improving its surface paste plant and underground reticulation network, and investing in dewatering and electrical infrastructure upgrades. — Vonn Andrei E. Villamiel
Japan steps up yen intervention threats, signals rate-hike chance
TOKYO — Japan stepped up yen intervention threats and signaled that further falls in the currency could justify a near-term interest rate hike, as policymakers grow increasingly concerned about inflationary pressures from the Middle East war.
In the strongest warning yet of yen-buying intervention, Japan’s top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said on Monday authorities may need to take “decisive” steps if speculative moves persist in the currency market.
“We are hearing that speculative moves are increasing in the currency market, in addition to the crude futures market. If this situation continues, it may be time to take decisive measures,” Mr. Mimura told reporters.
The remark marked an escalation from past verbal warnings as it was the first time Mr. Mimura, who oversees Japan’s currency policy, used the term “decisive” — language traders typically read as a signal of authorities’ readiness to intervene.
Markets have been rattled this month after the Iran war effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for about a fifth of global oil and gas flows, driving up crude oil prices and demand for the safe-haven dollar.
The yen bore the brunt and slid past the psychologically important ¥160-per-dollar level to its weakest since July 2024, when Japan last intervened to prop up the currency.
Soaring oil prices from the Middle East conflict add to inflationary pressures from the weak yen, which has been a political headache for policymakers by pushing up import costs.
STAGFLATION RISK LOOMS
Separately, Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda said the central bank would closely watch yen moves as they affect the economy and prices, suggesting inflationary pressures from a weak currency could justify raising interest rates in the coming months.
“Currency market moves are obviously among factors that hugely affect economic and price developments,” Mr. Ueda told Parliament on Monday.
“We will guide policy appropriately by scrutinizing how currency moves could affect the likelihood of achieving our growth and price forecasts, as well as risks,” he said, keeping alive the chance of a rate hike as soon as next month.
Mr. Ueda’s remarks highlight growing concern within the BoJ over the chance it could fall behind the curve in addressing the risk of too-high inflation, as high fuel costs hit an economy already experiencing years of steady price and wage increases.
While the BoJ kept rates steady in March, its policymakers debated further rate hikes with some flagging the chance of steady or faster-than-expected increases, the meeting’s summary showed on Monday.
Broadening cost pressures from rising oil prices could tip Japan into stagflation where the economy slumps and prices increase simultaneously, one member was quoted as saying, adding the BoJ may need to tighten policy if yen declines intensify.
Mr. Ueda said the BoJ must raise its short-term policy rate at an “appropriate pace” to avoid bond yields from overshooting, signaling its resolve to continue with steady rate hikes.
The BoJ ended a decade-long, massive stimulus in 2024 and raised rates including in December, when it hiked its short-term policy rate to a 30-year high of 0.75%, on the view Japan was making progress in durably achieving its 2% inflation target.
The central bank released last week several indices that help justify further rate hikes, including a new inflation gauge and revised output gap showing Japan running above capacity for a 15th straight quarter.
The summary of the BoJ’s March meeting, as well as last week’s release of a hawkish inflation, output gap and neutral rate estimates, suggests the bank is teeing up for its next rate rise, said Benjamin Shatil, an economist at JPMorgan Securities. “While the global risk environment remains fragile, and could affect the timing of the BoJ’s next move, we continue to pencil in a hike at the April meeting,” he said. — Reuters
Maxort to invest P400 million in LIMA Estate facility
MAXORT PHILIPPINES, INC., a manufacturer of export-oriented pipe fittings, plans to invest P400 million to open a 1.1-hectare (ha) facility at LIMA Estate in the second quarter.
Mintong Construction, Inc., which has built industrial facilities for Steelwell, Fong Shann, and Tang’s Realty, will develop the project.
“Maxort’s expansion through LIMA Estate demonstrates the strength of the Philippine market for global manufacturers. Each new investment brings valuable technology transfer and reinforces the Philippines’ capacity for sustainable, export-driven growth,” Aboitiz Economic Estates Vice-President for Commercial Strategy Monica Lorenzana Trajano said in a statement on Monday.
Maxort expects the project to generate about 150 construction jobs during the initial phase, with full operations targeted by the end of 2026.
The P400-million investment will add to LIMA Estate’s roster of international manufacturers and is expected to bring in foreign direct investment. Once operational, the facility is projected to create about 200 jobs, supporting local employment and regional economic activity.
“We chose LIMA Estate because the Philippines offers a strong foundation for growth. Its skilled workforce, reliable infrastructure, and supportive incentives allow us to scale responsibly while creating meaningful jobs for the local community,” Maxort Philippines, Inc. President Jinjun Zhao said.
LIMA Estate is a Philippine Economic Zone Authority-registered industrial hub, with 197 global manufacturers and service providers employing more than 75,000 workers across its industrial zones, central business district, and retail areas. It offers utilities, logistics connectivity, and infrastructure for export-oriented enterprises.
The estate plans to expand to 1,500 ha in Batangas over the next five to seven years, aiming to attract more foreign investment and support the province’s position as an industrial hub in Southeast Asia.
Aboitiz Economic Estates operates a 2,000-ha network of industrial townships across Southern Luzon and Central Visayas. Its developments host 260 locators and support about 100,000 jobs.
The company’s portfolio includes the 1,100-ha LIMA Estate in Batangas, the 63-ha Mactan Economic Zone 2 in Cebu, the 540-ha West Cebu Estate in Cebu, and the 384-ha TARI Estate in Tarlac. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno
Russia names Oscar-winning Mr Nobody film maker as a ‘foreign agent’
RUSSIA has designated Pavel Talankin, who secretly filmed pro-war propaganda in a school for the Oscar-winning documentary Mr Nobody Against Putin, as a foreign agent.
Mr. Talankin’s name appeared on Friday on the justice ministry’s online list of foreign agents — a term with connotations of spying that Moscow applies to people deemed to be engaged in foreign-backed anti-Russian activity.
The documentary by Mr. Talankin and David Borenstein uses two years of footage that Mr. Talankin recorded at a school where he was employed in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region, to show how students were exposed to pro‑war messaging.
It has been controversial even among Russians who oppose Mr. Putin and the war, with some criticizing Mr. Talankin for filming colleagues and children without their consent for his clandestine project.
Mr. Talankin, who fled Russia in 2024, has defended the film as a record for posterity to show how “an entire generation became angry and aggressive.” Accepting the Oscar earlier this month, the 35-year-old called for an end to wars.
People listed as foreign agents are subjected to onerous bureaucratic requirements and restrictions on their income in Russia. They are obliged to place the foreign agent label on social media posts or anything else they publish.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said after the Oscar awards that he had not seen the film and therefore could not comment on it. — Reuters
PhilWeb secures accreditation for gaming services
PHILWEB CORP. said it has obtained accreditation from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) as a gaming affiliate and support service provider, allowing it to offer technology and operational services to licensed operators within PAGCOR’s regulated ecosystem.
“This is a pivotal stage for the industry as it moves toward a more structured and transparent framework,” PhilWeb President Brian Ng said in a statement on Monday.
“We are committed to supporting this transition by delivering reliable and scalable technology solutions, while actively engaging with stakeholders to help strengthen the overall ecosystem,” he added.
The company said it is increasing its participation in the regulated gaming sector through technical working group discussions with regulators and stakeholders, while expanding its technology infrastructure.
These discussions are focused on developing standards aimed at improving transparency, consumer protection, and industry governance.
“These engagements reflect the company’s alignment with ongoing efforts to formalize and modernize the sector,” PhilWeb said.
PhilWeb said it is positioning itself under an asset-light business-to-business (B2B) model focused on systems integration, platform management, and operational services for licensed operators.
The company said the accreditation also reflects its capabilities in platform technology, system integration, and operational support.
PhilWeb said it has worked with resort operators, including Hann Casino Resort and Okada Manila, to provide platform operations, system integration, and infrastructure for regulated online gaming.
The company also said it has collaborated with FBM Philippines to deploy platform solutions across a network of gaming venues nationwide. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno
In the Easter story, women are the first to proclaim the resurrection — but US churches today are still divided over female preachers
By Mary Foskett
ON EASTER SUNDAY, festively decorated churches across the United States will be filled with worshippers eager to celebrate the most important day in the Christian year.
While some will attend services led by pastors who are women, the overwhelming majority of worshippers will not. Women constitute 23.7% of professional clergy in the US and an increasing percentage of people earning graduate theology degrees. However, data from 2018-19 shows that only 14% of US congregations, most of which are Christian, are led by women.
The number of women in Christian pulpits stands in jarring juxtaposition with the Easter narratives in the New Testament. The Gospel stories of the resurrection of Jesus point to how essential women’s witness and proclamation were in the earliest stages of Christianity.
FIRST WITNESS
Many denominations share a system assigning particular Bible verses to be read at each week’s services — a cycle that takes three years, called Years A, B, and C, to complete. Because Easter 2026 falls in year A in the common lectionary, the Gospel reading that many congregations across the US will hear read on Easter Sunday 2026 is Matthew 28:1-10, while others will hear John 20:1-18.
A beloved New Testament passage, John’s account of Jesus’ resurrection, is perhaps the most familiar. Following Jesus’ death on the cross — the day that Christians around the world mark as Good Friday — the text describes two men, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, retrieving his body. They prepare it for a traditional Jewish burial, then leave the shrouded corpse in a nearby tomb.
As Chapter 20 begins, one of Jesus’ most devoted followers, Mary Magdalene, approaches the tomb. Upon finding it empty, she tells two angels in white that “they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”
As the story unfolds, a weeping Mary is greeted by the risen Jesus, whom she at first mistakes for the gardener. When Jesus calls her by her name, Mary immediately recognizes him, calling him “Rabbouni,” or “teacher.” Jesus explains he will soon ascend to God, instructing her to go to the other disciples and share what he has revealed to her. As the story concludes, “Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.”
It is for this reason that Mary Magdalene has long been known as the first witness to the resurrection of Jesus. In his 13th-century commentary on the Gospel of St. John, Catholic theologian Thomas Aquinas called Mary “apostle of the apostles.”
WOMEN WATCHING
The Gospel of John’s description of Mary Magdalene’s actions aligns with the other canonical Gospels’ portrayal of women who followed Jesus. Despite small differences, all four describe women being the first to proclaim the resurrection.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, all of which were likely written before John, are known as the “Synoptic Gospels” because they narrate the basic story of Jesus’ life in the same general sequence. All three depict a group of women witnessing the end of Jesus’ life. They are identified as disciples who followed Jesus in Galilee, which was at the time a largely Jewish region under Roman rule. Galilee was central to Jesus’ ministry: It included Nazareth, where he was raised, and Capernaum, on the Sea of Galilee, which seems to have served as the hub of Jesus’ ministry.
According to the Synoptic Gospels, the women watched from a distance as Jesus was crucified and “saw the tomb and how his body was laid.” The three books differ in which women they name at the scene, although all include Mary Magdalene.
Most importantly, all the Synoptic Gospels narrate the women’s encounter with angelic figures at the empty tomb, who, in Matthew and Mark, instruct them to tell the other disciples that Jesus has been raised from the dead. In Luke 24:9, the women immediately proclaim the news. In Matthew’s telling, the women are greeted by the risen Jesus himself.
The Gospel of Mark, the earliest of the four canonical Gospels, differs in the way it concludes the story. As scholars have long recognized, Mark 16:8 formed the original, very terse conclusion to Mark’s narrative. After the women are told that Jesus has been resurrected, Mark writes, “So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.”
On a first reading, the stark ending seems anticlimactic. Indeed, later editors eventually added two more endings to Mark’s Gospel. The longest ending includes the risen Jesus appearing to Mary Magdalene, whose testimony is initially rebuffed, and then to others.
No matter which ending we read, though, the Gospel of Mark underscores that it was a woman’s voice that first proclaimed Jesus’ resurrection. Even the terse original ending suggests that the women eventually found their voices. By describing only the women as witnesses, Mark implies that they had to eventually share news about Jesus’ resurrection in order for the Gospel to be written.
PREACHING TODAY
Together, the canonical Gospels underscore the importance of women’s proclamation in the Easter story. Yet opposition to women regularly preaching persists in some Christian circles.
A majority of Protestant groups ordain women, including all seven “mainline” denominations — including the United Methodist Church, the Presbyterian Church USA, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Episcopal Church — as well as some Pentecostal and evangelical bodies, such as the Assemblies of God and Church of the Nazarene.
Yet multiple studies have pointed to the gap between supporting women clergy in principle and hiring them in practice, particularly as lead pastors. In 2017, about 27% of pastors in mainline Protestant churches were women, including, but not limited to, those in senior positions. Moreover, the two largest Christian bodies in the US, the Roman Catholic Church and the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), officially oppose women serving as pastors.
The SBC’s Baptist Faith and Message 2000 states that “the office of pastor/elder/overseer is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.” In February 2023, in a move that attracted national attention, the denomination expelled Saddleback Church, one of the most prominent megachurches in the country, because it had hired Stacie Woods for a preaching position. In total, the SBC deemed five churches “to be not in friendly cooperation” because of women’s roles. Since then, the convention has been mired in disagreement over how to apply the ban on women as pastors.
The matter is an especially timely one to consider at Easter. Churches will continue to debate whether to ordain women, depending on how they interpret specific parts of the Bible. Yet according to the Gospels, the New Testament as we know it would simply not exist were it not for the proclamation of women.
THE CONVERSATION VIA REUTERS CONNECT
Mary Foskett is a professor of Religious Studies at Wake Forest University. She wrote a successful NEH grant and a Hanes Foundation grant for the WFU Humanities Institute. She serves on boards for the Foundation for Theological Education in Asia and the Pacific, Feminist Studies in Religion, and Pacific Asian and North American Asian Women in Theology and Ministry; she was once a member of a church that was affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.
From baby boom to bust: Philippines fertility rate plummets to record low in 2025
THE Philippines’ total fertility rate (TFR) reached a record low of 1.7 children per woman in the 2023-2025 period, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Monday. Read the full story.
InLife market share now at 7.5%
INSULAR LIFE Assurance Co., Ltd. (InLife) has achieved a 7.5% market share in the Philippines’ life insurance industry following strong new business growth last year.
The insurer saw its new business annual premium equivalent (NBAPE) increase by 16% last year, outpacing the industry’s 10.7% expansion, it said in a statement on Monday.
“InLife attributes this sustained success to the synchronized performance of its three core distribution pillars: Agency Sales, which was fueled by manpower and sustainable production growth and a focus on long-term protection products; Bancassurance, which expanded its distribution capacity, and activated new growth engines; and Corporate Solutions with the acquisition of Generali Philippines, now InLife Benefits, signaling a major shift in how Philippine enterprises approach employee protection,” it said.
The insurer’s acquisition of Generali Life Assurance Philippines, Inc. was completed in May 2025.
It said it expects InLife Benefits to continue to remain a key driver for the rest of the year.
“InLife is doubling down on its specialization strategy. It fully divested its interests in its former HMO subsidiary (iCare) earlier this year to focus exclusively on its core mission: delivering world-class life and health insurance and comprehensive employee benefits.”
The insurer sold its shares in Insular Health Care, Inc. (iCare HMO) to Singaporean company Value-Based Healthcare PF Pte. Ltd. in January this year.
“Our growth story is one of focus. Through specialization, we can offer our customers and especially Philippine employers a unified, seamless experience,” InLife President and Chief Executive Officer Raoul Antonio E. Littaua said.
The insurer added that it will continue to prioritize capital stability and the expansion of its digital infrastructure to support its distribution network.
InLife’s premium income stood at P18.46 billion last year, data from the Insurance Commission showed. It booked a net profit of P2.66 billion. — Aaron Michael C. Sy
Calidad Realty expands operations, targets national market
CALIDAD REALTY said it is expanding its operations as it seeks to position itself in the national real estate market.
The brokerage, which started in 2020 during the pandemic, has since grown into a multi-million-peso firm, it said in a statement on Monday.
“In real estate, it’s never just about transactions — it’s about people, trust, and the future they are building,” Calidad Realty Founder and President Zaldy Aquino Herrera, Jr. said.
The company said it started as a small team and has since expanded its operations.
“We started Calidad with the goal of creating opportunities during uncertain times. Today, we celebrate not just growth, but the community we’ve built along the way,” Mr. Herrera said.
Over the past five years, the company said it has received several sales awards, conducted roadshows in North America and the Middle East, and entered into partnerships with developers.
Its property portfolio now totals billions of pesos, with a network of accredited projects across the country, it said.
The company also outlined expansion plans, including the launch of the Elite Group, a team of property specialists.
It also cited the Calidad Foundation, its social development arm.
“As Calidad Realty looks ahead, the company remains anchored in its founding philosophy: delivering quality service and matching clients with properties they truly deserve,” it said. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno
Italy investigates Sephora over marketing cosmetics to children
MAKE-UP retail giant Sephora is under investigation in Italy over marketing adult beauty products to children, which the Italian competition authority says is fueling an obsession with skincare among minors, including some under 10 years old.
The authority, AGCM, said it was the first European regulator to open an investigation over concerns that LVMH-owned brands Sephora and Benefit Cosmetics are using very young micro-influencers on social media to promote premature use of adult cosmetics. This, it said, is encouraging compulsive purchasing of face masks, serums, and anti-ageing creams, behaviors it linked to “cosmeticorexia” — an unhealthy fixation with skincare among minors.
Sephora, Benefit Cosmetics, and LVMH Perfumes & Cosmetics Italy said in a statement that they “operate in strict compliance with the applicable regulations” and will fully cooperate with the authorities. They declined to give any further comment.
Sephora, which has more than 20 million Instagram followers and 2.1 million followers on TikTok, has been at the center of the “Sephora Kids” social media trend, which documents children making cosmetic “smoothies” in stores and sharing their skincare routines or Sephora “haul” purchases in videos.
The “Haul from Sephora for Kids” tag on TikTok shows hundreds of videos of children as young as five buying make-up and skincare products in Sephora stores.
“The investigations were opened over concerns that important information — such as warnings and precautions for cosmetics not intended for, or tested on, minors — may have been omitted or presented in a misleading manner,” AGCM said in a statement, adding that children under the age of 10 to 12 were among those the brands are targeting.
Frequent use of a wide range of cosmetics by minors without proper awareness may be harmful to their health, the regulator said.
AGCM officials and the Italian financial police carried out inspections at the premises of Sephora Italia, LVMH Profumi e Cosmetici Italia, and LVMH Italia on Thursday last week, the authority said. — Reuters