Tag: Jenina P. Ibañez

THE Philippines should improve the education curriculum to boost competitiveness of its future workers, business leaders said.

BRITISH technology company Dyson Ltd. is planning to open a software lab in Alabang, Muntinlupa City, creating 400 software engineering jobs for research and development (R&D) work over the next three years.

TRADE Secretary Ramon M. Lopez on Thursday said he is open to reviewing the functions of his department’s trading arm after a senator pointed out redundancies.

THE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said it received 135 intellectual property violation reports in the first nine months, which include the lockdown period, exceeding the total compiled during the four years to 2019 by 4%.

THE Board of Investments (BoI) said it is seeking to attract investment in electric vehicle manufacturing, including production of wiring materials, in which the Philippines enjoys advantages in terms of access to supply.

MORE FILIPINOS are confident that the government is doing well in tackling corruption compared with Asian neighbors, although they also believe corruption in government remains a big problem, a survey from Transparency International showed.

THE Board of Investments (BoI) approved P826 billion in investments in the first 10 months, nearly a fifth lower than the estimated P1 trillion in the same period last year.

FITNESS CENTERS have been required to allow paid-up members who were not able to use their facilities during the lockdown to return without making further payments, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

THE Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is aiming to approve more than P100 billion in investment pledges by the end of the year, led by a potential investor relocating from China.

DDMP REIT, Inc. has submitted an application to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a real estate investment trust (REIT) offer.

TRADE SECRETARY Ramon M. Lopez said his department’s trading arm has accounted for all funds allocated to it, ahead of a possible Senate investigation into its finances.

A PROTECTIONIST stance by a Biden administration could come in the form of a tax on outsourced operations, which may dampen the prospects of the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, the head of an industry advisory firm said.

THE plastics industry is under pressure from import competition at a time of global surpluses for the segment, as well as reduced activity during the lockdown, the industry association said.

THE European Union (EU) is giving around P60 million in emergency relief aid to families affected by Typhoon Ulysses. The funding will go to its...

By Jenina P. Ibañez, Reporter The outsourcing industry once again cut its revenue and employment targets up to 2022, as growth is expected...

By Jenina P. Ibañez, Reporter The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) approved P14.6 billion worth of new investment projects on its Nov. 4 board...

Sardines manufacturer Mega Global Corp. is investing in a P1 billion manufacturing plant in Batangas to meet a spike in demand for canned goods. The...

THE BOARD of Investments (BoI) has approved a P45-million hotel investment project in Cebu City. The 63-room SureStay Plus Hotel is expected to create 32...

SWEDISH furnishing retailer Ikea plans to hire nearly 500 employees for its first Philippine store in Pasay City, which it said will be the largest Ikea branch in the world.

ONLY 30% of local government units (LGUs) have taken measures to digitize their processes, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said.

THE PHILIPPINES has signed on to an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) commitment to reduce trade restrictions on essential goods that help combat the pandemic.

THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) plans to process an additional 15,000 loan applications for micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the pandemic before the end of 2020, falling short of its initial target.

AROUND 68% of mostly small and medium Philippine enterprises have been strongly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a combined survey of around 500 Filipino firms.

EXPORTERS need to maximize their trade privileges for goods shipped to the United States due to the prospect of making inroads into the market currently served by Thailand after the kingdom’s tariff perks were suspended, a trade official said.

THE Philippine pavilion for the rescheduled Dubai World Expo is nearly complete, a trade official said.

IMPORTED car sales declined by 16% in October, while the industry continues to look to more growth towards the end of the year.

AUSTRALIA’S Macquarie Group Foundation is investing P43 million for women-led small and medium enterprises in the Philippines as a recovery tool amid the health crisis.

THE GOVERNMENT has launched a program accelerating the grant of intellectual property (IP) protections for science and technology research it supports, which is intended to speed up the commercialization of any innovations developed.

VEHICLE SALES in October plunged by 27.3% year on year to 25,023 units, the highest sales volume since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an industry group.

PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Monday issued an administrative order giving a special risk allowance to health workers handling coronavirus patients.

THE benefits of improved market access brought about by the newly-signed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will outweigh any disruption that less-competitive economies might experience, Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research said.

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS are warning that the loss of fiscal incentives under a proposed tax reform bill could worsen employment conditions, which are already under pressure due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

FIFTEEN Asia-Pacific economies, including the Philippines, signed the world’s largest free trade deal on Sunday, with observers saying the deal could boost Philippine market access while others believe it would worsen the trade balance.

THE Philippines inched up one spot in an annual global ranking of countries’ ability to attract and retain a skilled workforce, but continues to lag behind other Asia-Pacific economies.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES received the most number of data breach notifications so far this year among sectors monitored by the National Privacy Commission (NPC).

JAPANESE company Taiheiyo Cement Group will build a new P15-billion production line in Cebu to expand its local output capacity.

RISK ANALYSIS SKILLS are some of the top technology and cybersecurity work skills in demand right now as the economy recovers from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, an enterprise data security company said.

THE Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said it has recommended the lifting of the temporary deployment ban on healthcare workers, but with a limit on the number that will be allowed to leave.

PLASTICS MANUFACTURERS said they may be forced to close down factories if their supply of raw materials is hindered by safeguard tariffs.

THE surge in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sales during the holidays will be lower than the usual 20% seen in previous years, a market research company said.

THE department tallied 839,444 business registrations between January and early November, outpacing the 2019 full year by 32%, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in an online event Wednesday.

THE SUGGESTED retail prices (SRP) for food products used for the traditional Christmas eve feast, or noche buena, will be kept after the Trade department released the same price list from a year earlier.

RETAIL SALES during the end-of-year holidays are expected to be subdued as the economy recovers, with consumers expected to keep a lid on spending due to the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4euaqNlS9zoBEj1PPgI6tw Follow us on Spotify BusinessWorld B-Side The eight-month lockdown, one of the longest in the world, has kept much of the country’s workforce at home....

THE PHILIPPINES will likely see stronger relations with the United States after Joseph R. Biden, Jr. was elected US president on Saturday.